The Magical Phantom
by TheIceRaven
Summary: Vlad realized what he had to do to get Danny. Kill his family. But when his friends also die things go bad. Danny, left alone, goes to the GZ where Clockwork tells him of a place that could use another hero. So after changing Danny back to 11 but letting him retain his memories/powers Clockwork ships him to Hogwarts to be a wizard & help in the war with Voldemort. Pairing Undecided
1. Chapter 1: Ghostly Beginning

THE MAGICAL PHANTOM

CHAPTER ONE: GHOSTLY BEGINNING

"Are you sure about this, Daniel?" Clockwork asked his apprentice.

It had been a week since Vlad attacked the Fenton family, and although Danny was able to best him, it was at the price of everybody he held close to his heart. Danny had gone to Clockwork immediately after, not to reverse what could have been, but just for a place to stay. Hey, it beat going with the crazy fruit loop.

The Master of Overly-Complicated Riddles had told Danny that a war was going on at the very moment, one that he could help be part of the solution in. But there was also already someone there destined to stop the war. So Clockwork, instead of dumping the responsibility on only the Potter boy or only the young Phantom, he split it. Of course the Observants were against it but who cares, they were only one-eyed annoyances as far as Danny or Clockwork were concerned.

But the catch was, in order to be properly quipped to help; Danny had to attend the school the already planned hero and his friends were going to go to in the near future. And starting yearlings had to be eleven. Danny was already fourteen.

Currently, Danny was standing next to a weirdly large stopwatch, in human form, and glancing between the time device and time master.

"No," Danny admitted, "But I don't really have much choice."

Clockwork nodded and swiped his time-staff at the stopwatch whose hands begun spinning very rapidly in a counter-clockwise motion accompanied by a blinding flash of light from Danny.

After the clock stopped spinning backwards, the light died down to reveal… an eleven-year-old Danny?

He was obviously still Danny, but he was shorter and even thinner than he was before. Danny wore the exact same outfit as he did before but he red circle on his shirt had a red line through the still-filled circle.

"Did it work?" The now-pre-teen asked. And his voice was lighter too.

"That depends; can you still access your ghost form?" The elder asked.

Another difference from the last time he was eleven; he was allowed to keep his halfa status and memories still, although Clockwork warned him he might not have access to all of his powers yet. But he'd been promised his Ghostly Wail and ice powers so what other powers would he get?

Danny shrugged and closed his eyes, looking inside him for the cold feeling that had been there since the accident and pushed it outwards, smiling when he felt the familiar halo of light form around his waist and split.

Apparently, Phantom had changed more than Fenton had because gone was the HAZMAT that had become so familiar to him. Damn. He was gonna miss that thing.

Now it appeared Phantom had gone casual, wearing a black t-shirt with white trim, complete with his 'DP' logo and black combat boots that had white souls and laces along with a pair of white jeans topped off with a black belt. His hair was white as ever and his eyes still shined an unnatural and otherworldly green.

"It appears all your abilities are in tact." Clockwork informed him.

"What about my powers? Invisibility, Intangibility, Ecto-energy?" Danny questioned worriedly.

"Not to worry, Daniel. I can tell you for a fact you have your powers." His mentor told him.

Danny shrugged, not even bothering to ask why he had to test only his transformation, and transformed back to his human form.

"I assume you won't be coming along and that I'll have to handle this myself from here?" Danny asked sarcastically, picking up his packed suitcase. Not like it would matter. He was used to handling himself. Clockwork let out an amused chuckle.

"I'll always be watching over you, Daniel, weather you believe it or not. I have everything set up how it should be so all you have to do is follow your guide." The Time master informed him.

"Guide?" Danny asked, confused.

"You will be getting a guide who will deliver an acceptance letter to you and take you to make sure you are fully prepared, when asked for your key check your back left pocket and you're a cat person." Clockwork cleared up. Sort of.

"Acceptance letter? Key? Cat person? Clockwork, speak English-" Danny started before he and his suitcase were consumed in a white light and were gone when it cleared.

Clockwork smiled as the light disappeared and turned to his monitor displaying Danny appearing through a flash of light.

"Good luck, young Phantom."

* * *

"Damnit Clockwork. I should've known I wasn't gonna get a direct answer form him." Danny muttered to himself before looking up and checking his surroundings.

He found himself in an old beat up room with a long wood table with more chairs than it looked like it could hold littered around it and a rustic light fixture hanging above it. There was also a hole in the wall to his left and behind it sat a short, bald man who was presumably the barman.

Unconsciously, his electric blue eyes flashed green as they swept around the room looking for any possible threat. They automatically sized up everybody in the room, determining how big a threat they were in an instant and continued by scanning the room for any and all possible exits.

Satisfied, his eyes faded back to blue just in time for a familiar, yet so unfamiliar feeling creeping up his spine. Ghost Sense. But it wasn't the usual bone-chilling cold feeling going up his spine like usual, it was more of a tingling sensation crawling its way up his spine and out of his mouth in a mist. But it wasn't the usual icy blue; instead it was a whole mess of whites, pinks, yellows and blues.

Then someone who had caught his eye a moment ago stepped forward in his black robes and his black hair hanging in his face. Danny nodded to the man, although his guard was up.

"Are you Daniel Fenton?" The man asked, his voice ominous and strict.

"Yeah, that's me but call me Danny. And you are?" Danny asked, going for a handshake.

"Severus Snape, your soon-to-be Professor at Hogwarts." Snape told him, glancing at the outstretched hand before deciding to shake it.

The grip was firm, Snape noticed, much too firm to be coming from an eleven year old kid.

Surprisingly, Clockwork _had_ informed him that he was going to be going to a Wizarding school. He hadn't mentioned the name or the fact that a future teacher was his guide but he did mention it so Clockwork one, Danny zip.

"So, are you here to show me how to get to this school?" Danny asked Snape. Snape scoffed.

"No. I'm here to get you supplies and prepare you for your first year." Snape told him, holding out a piece of paper.

Danny took it with a small glare and begun to read it.

* * *

_HOGWARTS SCHOOL OF WITCHCRAFT and WIZARDRY_

_UNIFORM_

_First year students will require: _

_Three sets of plain work robes (black)_

_One plain pointed hat (black) for day wear_

_One pair of protective gloves (dragon hide or similar)_

_One winter coat (black with silver fastenings)_

_Please note that all pupils' tags should carry nametags_

_COURSE BOOKS _

_All students should have a copy of each of the following:_

_The Standard Book of Spells (Grade 1)_

_By Miranda Goshawk _

_A History of Magic_

_By Bathilda Bagshot_

_Magical Theory_

_By Adalbert Waffling _

_A Beginners Guide to Transfiguration _

_By Emeric Switch_

_One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi _

_By Phyllida Spore_

_Magical Drafts and Potions _

_By Arsenius Jigger _

_Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them_

_By Newt Scamander _

_The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self Protection_

_By Quentin Trimble _

_OTHER EQUIPMENT _

_1 wand_

_1 cauldron (pewter, standard size 2)_

_1 set glass or crystal phials_

_1 telescope _

_1 set brass scales_

_Students may also bring, if they desire, an owl or a cat or a toad_

_PARENTS ARE REMINDED THAT FIRST YEARS_

_ARE NOT ALLOWED THEIR OWN BROOMSTICK _

* * *

And at the bottom there was a signature he couldn't make out but he assumed it was either who send out letters or the headmasters name.

"Where can I get all this stuff?" Danny asked the professor. Snape rolled his eyes.

"Diagon Ally, kid. Where else?" Snape said, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

And with that, Snape started walking away further into the Leaky Cauldron, which Danny had learned the place was called from the sign above the bar on the menu, and through another door. Danny supposed he was supposed to follow and made his way to the door the way Snape went.

He got there to see Snape tap the wall twice, although he had most likely missed the beginning of that sequence, with a stick, presumably his wand, and open a doorway. Snape turned to the boy with a sneer.

"There's no time for dilly-dallying, boy. Follow me." Snape reprimanded Danny's slow response time.

"Maybe if I was given instructions to follow or something I would've been quicker to trust the stranger in a black cape." Danny retorted.

"Well I thought you were bright enough to follow my lead." Snape sneered back with a glare.

"I thought professors were bright enough to give proper instructions." Danny responded, glaring back.

Snape sighed aggravated but didn't reply. Whether it because he didn't want to argue or because he knew Danny had a point was undetermined. As they walked though the crowded ally, Danny felt the same strange tingling sensation he had felt in the Leaky Cauldron return to his spine.

Sure enough, the weird looking mist came out of his mouth again, this time drawing Snape's attention.

"What was that?" The professor asked. Danny quickly decided playing dumb was his best option. Not like he could explain it anyways though.

"What was that?" The Fenton pre-teen asked, putting on a show of looking around him.

Snape narrowed his eyes in suspicion but let the matter drop, focusing on the large building in the center of a fork in the path up ahead with the words 'Gringotts Bank' carved atop the large doors.

"Why are we going to a bank?" Danny asked again, this time honestly curious.

"Well we've got to pay to get you supplies for school don't we? And I doubt you already have wizarding money on your person." Snape responded evenly to the American teen.

Danny didn't reply verbally but nodded confirmation although he was secretly dreading the bank visit since he had no money whatsoever in the bank. Did Snape know that? Or was he expecting him to get his money out? Maybe the school paid for it?

They walked through the large doors and Danny instantly straightened up and looked around the room for potential threats, identifying everyone in the room. He of course didn't see them as threats immediately for not being people, they were goblins of some sort, but out of habit. Snape, however, thought the former.

"They're not going to attack, Mr. Fenton. Although they may give you lip, they are harmless." Snape assured him.

Danny didn't bother correcting the professor and nodded, but swept his eyes around the room for all exits anyway.

Once again, force of habit. The future-teacher-and-future-student duo made their way to the goblin-like creature behind the tallest desk, which Danny assumed was the main place these 'transactions' took place.

"Can I help you?" The goblin asked, annoyed as if he was disturbed from sitting there.

"Probably not but we'll ask you anyway." Danny quipped back. He noticed Snape smirk a little while the banker growled.

"Whaddaya want?" He asked harshly at the Fenton boy.

"Mr. Fenton here would like to make a withdrawal." Snape spoke up for the raven-haired pre-teen.

"That depends." The banking goblin spoke back. Danny snorted.

"On what, how high you can count?" He asked sarcastically. This time he noticed Snape smirking a lot.

"Just give me your key." He said, seemingly giving up on trying to outwit the child.

Danny's eyes went wide as the thought back to Clockwork's words "_when asked for your key check your back left pocket". _Danny did as his mentor instructed and reached into the back left pocket of his jeans. Sure enough, a small golden key in Danny's hand was the end result. Clockwork two, Danny zip.

"Let's go. You're marked down as 'Vault 412'." The goblin said, walking away. Snape followed.

"Doesn't anyway say 'follow me' anymore?" Danny muttered as he trudged behind the two.

* * *

They had finally gotten everything on the list. All the books, all the robes and all the equipment. Except the most important thing; a wand. As he and Snape were heading to someplace Snape called "Ollivander's" which was where he assumed he would get a wand, Danny saw something that caught his eye.

A pet store.

"Hey! Can we go there first?" Danny asked, stopping in front of the store and looking inside the window. Snape scowled.

"Fine but make it quick." The black-robed man told him, slowly walking behind the sprinting Danny.

Danny walked through the doors and was surrounded by animals in cages, all looking extremely excited at his entrance like it was the most exciting they'd had all week. He slowly walked around, looking for something that caught his eye. He passed by endless owls and toads all different sizes and colors. He was so into looking around he didn't hear the bell above the door open again, even after Snape's entrance behind him.

Finally he came across something that caught his eye; a black cat that had white paws and a white tip on its tail. The feline's green eyes locked with his blue one's as if they could see the underlying green glow. Neither pair moved away for at least two minutes. Until the cat's eyes glanced over his shoulder and the tingling mist came back, making Danny turn around.

He saw a girl his age with bushy brown hair and black robes holding open a cage door to an owl's cage. Only the owl had the signs of anger Danny had come to recognize with birds thanks to Vlad's stupid vulture henchmen being pretty consistent at kidnapping attempts the last month. The glazed over eyes, the upper body leaning forward, the talons twitching.

Danny let out a "GET DOWN!" the same time the bird let out a large "SQUAWK" and charged the brown haired girl. Luckily Danny had a lot of practice knocking people out of the way of oncoming projectiles and successfully tackled said girl to the ground as the large aggressive owl flew straight where her head would have been.

Danny got up from lying on the girl into a standing position, holding his hand out to help the girl up which she took with a smile that he returned.

"Thanks for the save back there. My head'd surely be owl food if you hadn't been here." The girl told him after she stood up.

"No problem. Danny, Danny Fenton." Danny introduced himself, going for a handshake before remembering she never let go of his hand in the first place. Instead she shook their already-joined hands and spoke.

"I'm Hermione Granger, pleasure to meet you." She said, letting go of his head. Danny nodded.

"Why did you have that bird cage open anyway? The sign in front of the store says no handling without supervision." Danny asked out of curiosity.

If he was any good at first impressions, and as a honed fighter he was, she was a stickler for the rules. The proper tone in her voice, the way she stood with her head held high and the fact that she was already in school uniform were just a few things he had noticed.

"I just thought he needed a little company. That one was the only bird in the store that didn't squawk when I first walked in here. I thought maybe if I showed him some attention he'd be happy. Apparently not." She answered, looking down.

Danny was about to reply, but was cut off by what he couldn't help but feel would become a rather often call of,

"Fenton!" From Professor Snape.

The student duo turned to see Snape and the storeowner standing there, glaring with the large angry owl in a much smaller cage, seemingly glaring at everything.

"I recognize you! Your Professor Snape from Hogwarts! I've read all about your class. You teach potions, right?" Hermione asked eagerly, almost bouncing. Rather than answering, Snape continued yelling at Danny.

"What in the right mind possessed you to let this bird out of the cage? Didn't you read the sign that says you need supervision?" Snape asked, glaring down at the Fenton boy.

Danny didn't reply, instead glancing to Hermione to see her looking scared out of her mind, most likely about what her punishment was when he told Snape it was her who let the bird out. He had half a mind to rat her out and save his own ass from being on even worse terms with Snape before the school year even started. But the other half told him to go with it since it was obvious this girl was more afraid of anything Snape could do than he was. Eventually his hero complex won out just as Hermione was about to speak.

"I was thinking 'hey, maybe this will get Snape angry'." Danny sarcastically replied. "What did you think I was thinking? I wanted to pet it."

Hermione looked at him, mouth agape, while Snape scowled. Danny knew he had to at least apologize though.

"I'm sorry, okay? I've just never seen an owl so close before." Danny tried to amend. Snape sighed.

"Ten points from-. Whatever house you end up in, Fenton." Snape said, before gesturing to the bird. "I suppose you would like this one, then?"

Danny looked down at the bird in the cage the owner was holding. The owl glared and let out a low, angry squawk. Danny glared back, before thinking back to his final moments in Clockwork's tower. Clockwork three, Danny zip.

"Nah. I'm more of a cat person." He said, looking back at the cat's green eyes that were watching the scene with great intensity.

* * *

Shade, Danny decided, was his cat's name. Of course he checked with the wizarding cat first and it seemed anything was better than 'Exhibit 14' to him. Hermione and her parents joined Danny and Snape on their way to the wand shop, which was the last place both groups had to visit.

After they walked inside both eleven year olds were amazed at the collection of wands the man had amounted. It didn't even look like there were walls, just wand boxes! Danny was so amazed he didn't care that the multicolored mist had returned.

They stood and waited for a few moments but both Danny and Snape's patience grew thin and they called "HELLO?" and "OLLIVANDER!" respectively. There was a few seconds of silence before a mobile ladder came from their right and slid to a stop while the man riding it hopped off with a large smile.

"More first years, eh? I suppose you yearlings are lookin' for wands?" The man Danny assumed was Ollivander asked.

Hermione and her parents said, "Yes, please" while Danny and Snape silently nodded.

"Which one of you wants to step up first?" Ollivander asked the future students.

Hermione turned to Danny with almost pleading eyes. Danny smiled, knowing that she was way more excited for this moment than he was.

"Ladies first." Danny told her, waving his arm to the wand-maker. The girl squealed in excitement as she practically pranced up in front of Ollivander.

"Raise your wand arm."

And no more than two tries later Hermione's wand chose her; a wand made from vine with a dragon heartstring core and a length Danny didn't catch. **(A/N; which also means I can't find the length :P)**

"You're up next, kid. Come on down." Ollivander called to Danny, who sighed and stepped forward.

"Raise your wand arm." He said.

Danny hesitated a minute before raising his right arm. He was good with both hands, really, but that was because he had to learn to fight ghosts handicapped for a week when Skulker crushed his hand so bad even when it looked fully healed it still hurt like hell to move. So he had learned to do pretty much everything with his left hand too, including aim Ecto-blasts; something that had screwed him over multiple times the first two days.

* * *

Two hours.

Ollivander had been searching for Danny's wand for two whole hours. The Grangers and Snape were sleeping sitting up in chairs, they fell asleep somewhere around wand sixty-four, and Danny was beginning to tire of waving his right arm so much, knocking over countless shelves, breaking multiple glass frames, exploding all the wood chairs and one wand had flat out refused him and floated out of his hand. Then of course there was the wand that had started shooting magic everywhere, including Snape's head. Danny was not looking forward to _that_ discussion later.

But both Ollivander and Hermione were still excited. Ollivander because of the challenge Danny presented him and Hermione because she was learning about the different wand materials. Ollivander gasped and snapped his fingers, as if reaching a conclusion before running behind a wall of wand boxes.

"Did he get the perfect wand idea or did he just give up?" Danny asked Hermione, who shrugged.

Danny's question was answered in the form of Ollivander returning with a white box in his hands and a confused expression on his face.

"This wand is like no other I have made. Instead of being made of purely one wood, it combines two; Blackthorn and Beech, a very unusual thing to have two woods make one wand in general, let alone those two. Then instead of using the tail hair from a Thestral, it uses a scale." He said, opening the white box.

Inside was a wand, 11 ½ inches, that had black and tan woods wrapping around each other, forming one stick and at the end was a grey scale inside the glass bubble. Just from being so close, the wand set off the multicolored mist again.

Danny reached out and picked up the wand, holding it carefully. Then he waved it and was pleasantly surprised to see green sparks coming from the top. Ollivander nodded, pleased with his work while Hermione grinned ear-to-ear.

After Ollivander charged the two seven galleons each, Hermione began to explain to the halfa why she was so excited for his wand.

"Blackthorn wand users are pretty rare. Most people don't ever meet one. Having a blackthorn wand choose you means you have the heart o a warrior and the wands in general become pretty loyal. Beech, however, when it chooses a younger person – "like me"- it means said person is wise beyond their years." Hermione explained.

That made sense, Danny thought. He supposed he could be called a warrior, having had to fight for his half-life every day for a year and a half. The beech part too, made sense because he was definitely wiser than people ever gave him credit for. He had to worry constantly about things people didn't even know existed or could happen.

"What about this Thestral scale?" Danny asked, pointing to his wand.

"Thestral's tail hair's are given to people who have some connection to death or the dead or the realm of the dead. A Thestral scale, though, I'm not entirely sure. I've never read anything about that being in a wand. And I've only ever read about wands being made of more than one wood." Hermione told him. "Do you have a connection to death?"

Danny held back a snort. He was only half-dead himself, had powers of the dead, had dead enemies, had dead family and friends, been into the Ghost Zone more times than he could count and bested the 'God of the Dead' in a one-on-one. But he couldn't tell her all that.

"Maybe a little." He told her instead, smiling.

* * *

"Platform 9¾. Why the hell would there be a platform 9¾?" Danny complained. Shade, who was sitting on top of the luggage cart Danny was pushing, just meowed.

Snape had sent he and Hermione on their way soon after the wand escapade, saying he needed to get to Hogwarts and prepare for the opening ceremony. Hermione believed him without a hesitation and skipped away into the train station with her parents but Danny had only believed that Snape wanted just to get away from him and Hermione as quick as he could. Either way, Danny and his new cat made their way to the train station.

Now wandering hopelessly around, a glowing piece of paper on a bench caught his attention. So the hybrid quickly snatched it up to find it as a letter. He automatically knew it was from Clockwork, if the 'CW' symbol watermarked on the paper was anything to go by.

"_Hello young Phantom,_

_I just sent you this letter to tell you that ghosts are not the only creatures that pass through walls. And intangibility isn't the only means to do so, either. Also, a word to the wise, the girl is smarter than you think._

_ Timeless Fortune,_

_ Charles Work."_

It took Danny a minute to realize 'Charles Work' was just Clockwork's alias for now. That left the rest of his time to think about what the hell the stopwatch meant.

* * *

Clockwork four, Danny zip.

Yet again, Clockwork was right. Ghosts weren't the only things that walked through walls and there were multiple ways to do so. And apparently magic was one of them. He was used to walking through walls by now but his poor cat almost went ballistic.

He had lost Hermione since before they entered the train station so he wasn't expecting to see her again anytime soon. He was on his own for now. If he was being honest, he was king of looking forward to some peace and-

"Danny! There you are!" Hermione's voice called out.

Danny turned around to see Hermione waving him over so he sighed, then smiled and made his way over to the smiling brown-haired girl.

"Hey Hermione. Hello Mr. and Mrs. Granger." Danny greeted as he wheeled his cart over to the Granger family.

"Hello Danny, nice to see you found your way through the wall after all." Mr. Granger commented, looking down amusedly at Hermione who looked down, embarrassed. It was as if there was some joke he wasn't getting.

"Yeah well, I had a little help." Danny admitted, scratching the back of his neck. "Did you guys cross okay?"

"We managed okay, thanks. Well we're all here to see Hermione off. Is anyone here to see you off?" Mrs. Granger questioned, looking around for an adult with Danny.

Danny's smile fell for a second but it was back before anybody could tell it was gone. He had to do his best to keep his emotions in check normally or else his powers would leak out but he had to be especially careful with his new-found magic since Clockwork had told him the whole purpose for magic schools was to learn to control their magic, which was unstable based on emotions in early ages. Besides they didn't have to know everything about his past.

"Nope. I thought you knew that since you saw me with Professor Snape rather than family." Danny replied, looking at the ground. To hide his glowing eyes.

"We assumed he was preparing you and that your family would've came later to see you off." Mrs. Granger told him, her husband nodding.

"Sorry too disappoint you guys but it's just me. My parent's, they- um aren't with us anymore. And my guardian has a really important job so he couldn't be here today," Danny told the Grangers. _'Doesn't mean he isn't watching though.'_

Hermione gasped at the revelation and her parents sent him apologetic looks. He didn't want their pity, though. He didn't want to be reminded of what happened. Their apologetic looks did nothing to stop his fury at himself for not being strong enough to save them. He also knew that they had no idea what happened and they didn't understand the severity of his simple statement 'aren't with us' so he forced himself to calm down.

"I'm sorry Danny, I had no idea that-" Hermione started to apologize but was cut off by her friend.

"Don't worry about it. There's no way any of you could have known." Danny waved off, staring pointedly at all three Grangers.

Mr. Granger looked like he was about to say something but was swiftly cut off by the train whistle, signaling the last chance to board. Hermione quickly hugged both her parents goodbye while Danny waved with a smile at them as he and Hermione started walking towards the train. Except he noticed Hermione was practically dragging one of her suitcases.

"Need help with that?" He asked knowingly.

"No, no. I got it." She insisted, trying to drag it again but couldn't with just one arm.

And the other was busy pushing her cart. Danny rolled his eyes and took the handle from her hand and effortlessly picked it up, smiling at her dumbfounded look. Ghostly strength comes in handy a lot, Danny had learned.

The witch-in-training shook her head to clear her thoughts on how Danny so easily lifted up her large trunk and began walking towards her chosen compartment. Danny couldn't help but notice the multicolored mist coming back again.

* * *

Now that their luggage was entirely away and the two had the compartment to themselves, Danny and Hermione were stretched out along their respective seats.

Danny's head was against the window looking at the door and Hermione who was facing the window with Shade sitting contently on Danny's lap, enjoying the quiet.

"My parents didn't scare you too badly did they? Sometimes they go overboard when I introduce them to friends." Hermione questioned, a little jokingly and a little seriously. Danny chuckled.

"Nah, it's cool. I know how parents can be. They seemed like they were genuinely trying to be kind rather than embarrass you. But they might be trying a little too hard to be polite." Danny brushed off.

"Well I think they tried so hard because they seem to have taken a liking to you. Can't remember the last time my parents wanted to meet friends' parents." She told him truthfully.

"So if you already had all the things you needed, why were you shopping in Diagon Ally at a pet store when you didn't even get a pet?" Danny changed the subject to keep conversation.

"I've always wanted a pet of my own. Mum and dad always let me pick the dog we'd get but that was never, you know, _mine_. I wanted a cat or maybe an owl but apparently I don't have a way with birds and yours was the only cat they had." Hermione told him.

Shade, having heard her statement, uncurled himself off the hybrid's lap and jumped over the floor onto the other seat, landing on Hermione's lap and curling up again, purring contently. Hermione smiled as she pet Shade.

"Well I guess I'll be sharing mine with you then." Danny said amused, watching his cat falling asleep under Hermione's touch.

Hermione looked like she was about to say something but a knock on the door and it swinging open right after and having a very round child their age poke his head in the door interrupted her.

"Has anyone seen my toad?"

* * *

"Stupid escaping toad. Stupid persuasive Hermione. Stupid begging Neville." Danny muttered, walking along the train cars looking for said toad until he was jerked at a wall when the train turned. "Stupid moving train."

Shade meowed from Danny's feet. Neville, the boy with the lost toad, had begged for his help in searching for his toad after Hermione said she would help. Danny really just wanted to sit still for a few minutes but Hermione had told him there would be plenty of time to laze around. So grudgingly and making sure they heard his muttering, Danny and Shade headed west. But not before Danny had cried that the toad must have "Gone west, young man".

"You wanted to go west just so you could make that reference didn't you?" Hermione had shouted after him as he and Shade continued on their way. He knew he didn't need to answer because she already knew that he did.

Danny had poked his head into several compartments looking for Neville's toad and asking the people in them if they had seen or heard anything that may have even resembled one. But of course nobody had. The next compartment Danny checked he came across something he felt like he was interrupting.

He saw some blonde little rich boy putting down what he assumed was a girl under the mess of blonde hair he could see past the blonde boy and his two henchmen. He could've sworn he almost heard he crying. So he decided to step in.

"Didn't your mother ever teach you its rude to make girls cry?" Danny asked pointedly, slamming time door shut behind him as he entered.

The three boys instantly spun around, sputtering out three different cover stories but laughed when they realized he was just another student.

"Didn't your mother teach you to mind your own business?" The blonde-haired boy replied, smirking as his 'back-up' laughed.

"She was probably too busy making sure I didn't look like a girl. You know the feeling, right? Oh, wait." Danny shot back, smirking as the three boys growled.

"Don't you know who you're talking to?" Henchmen #1, as Danny had taken to calling him in the last twelve seconds, said pointing to the boy in the middle.

"No I don't," Danny started but the boy continued like he hadn't spoken.

"This is Draco Malfoy!" He finished in a yell.

"Nor do I care." Danny finished, smirking at the red-in-the-face boys.

"You'd best watch your tone if you know what's good for you." Henchmen #2 threatened him.

"And if you know what's good for you, you'll leave right now." Danny replied without hesitating.

Draco glared, huffed and held his head up with his eyes closed to walk by Danny, as if going to leave with his henchmen following. Until Danny felt two hands on his shoulders when he was going to walk over to the girl. Big mistake.

In one swift motion both henchmen took an elbow to the gut. The one on the right collapsed and the one on the left needed to be kicked in the shin once before he tripped on top of the other one. That was that, Danny thought as he glared at Draco.

"Get outta here." He said, shaking his head. Malfoy and his henchmen all scrambled out of the compartment, leaving a laughing Danny behind. Danny only laughed harder as Shade hissed at the door as they exited.

"Hey. You alright?" Danny asked, sitting next to the blonde-haired girl who had looked up from her lap when he had started mouthing off to Draco and his cronies'. Shade hopped up after him.

"Yeah, just fine thanks. Draco just likes to push peoples buttons. And he knows exactly which ones to press." She told him sadly.

"Why was he picking on you in the first place? You don't seem like the usual 'bully' material." Danny noted.

It was true. She was very pretty considering he just met her a moment ago, with the clearest grey eyes he'd ever seen and hair so full it looked like he could get lost in it.

"It's because I, unlike most pure-bloods, don't mind the integration of muggle-born or mud-blood wizards. Draco hates them with a passion. Thinks pure-bloods are superior and all that jazz." She told him, rolling her eyes at the boys' behavior towards all the non-pure-blood wizards. He didn't know how outnumbered purebloods were anymore.

"If it makes you feel any better," Danny paused gauging her reaction. He continued when he saw her smile. "I hate him already too." She let out a forced chuckle.

"Actually. That helps." She told him, smiling a little more. "Names Daphne. Daphne Greengrass." She said, going for a handshake.

"Danny Fenton at your service ma'am." Danny said formally, doing a mock-bow as he shook the girls hand. "Say. You haven't seen or heard a toad recently, have you?"

"Sorry but no. Why? Are you trying to find one?" Daphne replied, confused.

"Yeah. A friend of mine convinced me to help her look for this kids toad. I don't know where it could be though." Danny muttered to himself the last part, standing up. Shade meowed.

"Would you like some help?" Daphne offered kindly.

He could tell that she meant well, at least. But he could also tell she _really_ didn't want to get up and help in the search. Which he thought was understandable, since that was he a few minutes ago. So he figured if he couldn't relax, at least someone could.

"No, that's okay. My friends probably already have him by now; they were checking the other way. I'll see you later, Daphne." Danny responded, waving as he exited the door, Shade purring his goodbye from his feet.

"Bye Danny!" Daphne's muffled voice came from the other side of the shut door.

'_Nice going, Phantom. You managed to get one the bad side of someone with influence in the magical community and a professor and the year hasn't even started yet.' _Danny scolded himself.

He and Shade started back to their compartment when the intercom turned on and a voice, presumably the conductors, rang out.

"_We are now approaching Hogwarts. Please gather your things and prepare to depart from the train."_

**Hello people! Yes, TheIceRaven is not dead!**

**For the past month I've had sever writers block, the bane of writers everywhere, so all you fellow authors who were disappointed by my lack of updates for the past month know how I feel. So I've seen this technique used a few times where instead of trying to write a current story, to overcome writers block by starting more! Now I am in no position to start a new story with three stories still going but… I did it anyway! **

**I wasn't going to upload this at first but I thought that since it was written, why the hell not? And it could give me the chance to tell you why I haven't updated. So to all my readers of other stories who are reading this, please bear with me. **

**And another thing. I've decided to put my other crossover on hold while I work more on The Phantom's Realm. Yes I realize that's unfair but it does have more waiters and I will pick it up after. Maybe work more on this one if enough people like it but we'll see. **

**You can review here or another story of PM me if you'd like more information on this jumbled mix of stories but review to this one anyway! It's the only way I'll continue making updates is if enough people like it.**


	2. Chapter 2: Phantom's Sorting

THE MAGICAL PHANTOM

CHAPTER TWO: PHANTOM'S SORTING

Danny felt the train slow to a stop just moments after the intercom cut off after saying something about leaving your luggage out on the platform for it to be brought to Hogwarts separately but he had tuned out for most of the conductors' speech.

He and Shade headed back to their compartment as quickly as they could and Danny, wheeling his cart, got off at the closest door, smiling as he stretched his limbs. Shade mirrored him and stretched his front legs, pushing his back into the air.

"Looks like we're almost at Hogwarts. You ready for this?" Danny asked his cat, who meowed back. Danny smirked. "Thought so."

They made their way to the large bearded man ringing a bell yelling 'Firs' years over here!' After gathering what Danny assumed was all the first years the bell ringing stopped and the man spoke.

"Hello there, Harry." He said to a black-haired boy in the front row.

"Hey, Hagrid." The boy replied casually. Danny could tell he was smiling.

"All firs' years this way! Come on follow me! No more 'en four to a boat." Hagrid called.

The mass of children followed him, Danny lagging behind with Shade in his arms. He followed the group of kids to a dock where there were loads of wooden boats with lanterns in the middle. There he saw Hermione glance between a boat with a redheaded kid and the black haired boy, Harry, who'd spoken to Hagrid earlier and his moving form. He smiled at her and nodded his head at the other boys, telling her that he would be okay.

He would admittedly be a little lonely but it was obvious she was friendly with the boys there already. Neville was also on the boat so him going with her was out of the question. But if she went with him, she wouldn't know anybody but him, so he figured it would be better she make other friends since she struck him a lot like Jazz; extremely smart but not very sociable.

He was better off on his own than she was anyway.

* * *

Danny had managed to survive the float over to Hogwarts despite being with three people he'd never met before and had no intention of becoming friends with. After arriving at the school Hagrid had handed the group over to Mrs. Minerva McGonagall, an elderly woman with a stern look on her face as she stared pointedly at the class. She had made the tingling sensation return and brought back the various-colored mist.

Danny instinctively sized her up, determining her power levels and capabilities as a witch. She was obviously a force to be reckoned with, he could tell that from just assuming the experience she had alone, not to mention the fact that she looked like she could vaporize any of the students here with a strong enough glare.

McGonagall had gone on to describe the four houses and their traits, which Hermione had discussed with him earlier that day anyway, and the way the House Cup worked and the rules it had. Hermione had told him about that too. He admittedly zoned out after that, choosing to scout his future classmates instead.

He was startled when Neville broke from the crowd, shouted 'Trevor!' and bent down to scoop up… a toad? So_ that's_ where the little escape artist went. McGonagall shot him a stern glare, so stern Danny thought it would've made Skulker slink down into a hole, and Neville unsurprisingly shrunk back into the crowd of future students, cradling his toad. Danny noticed most of the students broke out into chuckles at Neville's misfortune, except Harry, Hermione and the redhead kid stopped when Harry elbowed him. McGonagall didn't seem to notice and abandoned the rest of her speech in favor of bringing them through the doors behind her into some kind of cafeteria.

He instantly noticed the star-y background to the celling it had and although he knew it wasn't real, after all it was only six o'clock or so in the afternoon, but it was still a great sight. With his enhanced hearing he heard some others murmur about the look-alike night sky above, among them Hermione's voice telling her friends it was bewitched to do so.

McGonagall led the first years to the front of the room and left them standing there as she walked up to the set of people behind desks beyond a stage of some sort. Up there was nobody who peaked his interest until his eyes landed on a man with a large bearded man. The tingling mist started pouring out of his mouth in big fogs as he stared at the man in the center of the stage.

Danny could tell that despite his elderly and frail appearance, this man was no joke. He had some serious power behind that wand. Then Danny felt the bearded mans eyes on him. He turned to meet them, and stared right back. He saw surprise flash through the old mans eyes, then confusion and finally settling on a neutral expression.

Danny heard the people in the hall talking with his enhanced hearing, and deduced the names of the people on the stage. There was McGonagall, who taught transfiguration, Snape, who taught potions, that he recognized and a Professor Quirrel, the DADA teacher, Filius Flitwick, Charms teacher, Pomona Sprout, Herbology teacher, and Albus Dumbledore, the headmaster. Amazing what one can learn with super hearing, isn't it?

Quirrel had left a moment ago, and had just handed McGonagall a stool with an old hat on it. She placed it in the center of the stage before the standing children.

"This," McGonagall began, "is the sorting hat. Each one of you first years shall be called up one by one to determine which house you belong in."

After she finished the teachers and other years began to sing some song very loudly. Danny had no idea what the hell they were doing but it seemed important so he didn't comment. After the singing stopped McGonagall, just like she said, called people up one by one. Danny could've sworn he heard someone mention wrestling trolls, and rather loudly.

"Abbot, Hannah." She started.

She went on to call a bunch of names of people Danny couldn't care less about, but his attention was once again grabbed when McGonagall called a very familiar name. His.

"Fenton, Daniel."

He sighed and trudged up to the stool that the others had also sat on, Shade right on his heels. He heard some mutterings and snickers about his cat following him but he didn't care. He sat down with another sigh and lowered the hat down on his head.

"_Please lower your mental barriers, Mr. Fenton. I assure you I mean no harm."_ He heard out loud.

Danny heard some gasps around the room. He attributed this to the fact that not everyone had developed mental barriers, let alone strong enough to hold out this hat that could apparently see past everything. He lowered them about halfway only, however. He couldn't afford to let out all his emotions and thoughts.

'_Ah, an interesting one indeed. I've never seen a muggle-born quite like yourself.' _The hat said, this time only in his head. Danny guessed that now that his barriers were lowered it made it able to communicate telepathically. _'Come to think of it, I've never met a halfa either.'_

'_I wouldn't expect you to. There's only three of us.' _Danny thought back angrily. _'You better not tell anyone about this.'_

'_Relax; your secret is safe with me Mr. Fenton. Or should I say, Phantom?' _The hat laughed. _'Now then, lets look at which house best suits you. _

_Definitely bold and brave enough for Gryffindor. It is no small feat to fight off a world of enemies every day with little to no help. And brawling with the God of the Dead alone would secure your spot with the lions. But there's more that makes you a lion. You're chivalrous and always thinking of others before yourself. Pulling out chairs and opening doors aren't something you need to be told to do and are aspects of your personality. Then there's your courage. You stand up for what you believe in, no matter whom you're standing against. Weather it be teachers, bullies, crushes, enemies, friends, family, Snape and even evil, how you say 'fruit loops', its all the same to you. You don't back down. Gryffindor would welcome you. _

_Hufflepuff would do you well. You're extremely loyal, but only to those who have earned your loyalty. You're dedicated enough that you continued protecting you home, even when you were scorned for it. You were patient with those who didn't see things the same way or sought wrong and 9 times out of 10 showed them the light. Ms. Grey, Princess Dorathea and Danielle are only a few examples. Not minding working hard is only another thing on the list; you've proved you stretch yourself as thin as you can to complete all your responsibilities and do everything in your power to do so. I don't even have to mention your accepting nature. Yes, Hufflepuff would welcome you without a second thought. _

_Wise, witty and original. A Ravenclaw if I ever saw one. You were wise enough to bring your friends and enemies together in multiple situations to work against a bigger threat, to navigate this entire realm of new possibilities and options alone, to learn as much as you could learn to better defend your hometown from ghosts and ghosts from humans. You were witty enough to outwit the goblins at Gringotts, multiple enemies and even backtalk to authority figures. Or original enough to name your other half 'Phantom' in an attempt at disguising yourself, despite knowing the obvious closeness to your original surname and at the same time, calling yourself 'Danny Paranormal being'. Ravenclaw would be a great fit.' _

Danny could practically see the sarcasm in the part.

'_And finally, Slytherin. You're cunning, for sure, cunning enough to use multiple weaknesses against multiple enemies at the same time on multiple occasions. You're self-preservation skills are unmatched; you did whatever you had to do to survive in the past; be it lying, disobeying rules or manipulating people, you've done it. But it was all necessary, wasn't it? Next you have determination and willpower. Your determination is quite remarkable, letting you persevere when the situation is as bad as it gets. And your willpower is astounding. Withstanding blow after blow, hit after hit, and still floating back into the ring using willpower alone. Very Slytherin._

_You, Mr. Phantom, could thrive in all of the four houses. I could see you being a brave lion, a loyal badger, a wise raven, or a cunning snake. You should have your own house, Mr. Phantom.' _The hat chuckled. _'You could be your own house ghost.'_

'_What's a house ghost?'_ Danny thought to the hat.

'_Each house has a ghost that corresponds to it. Gryffindor has Sir Nicholas, Hufflepuff has the Friar, Ravenclaw has The Grey Lady and Slytherin has The Bloody Baron. Now then, lets see. You've got more than enough traits to be accepted into all the houses. Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin would all be lucky to have you. But I believe you'll thrive here like no other. Yes. Better be, SLYTHERIN.' _The hat announced the house name loudly.

The members of the Great Hall clapped as Danny made his way to the Slytherin table with Shade still trailing at his ankles. He had noticed Malfoy's Henchmen #1 there, Crabbe, sneering at him. He instead chose to sit next to the one of ghost that had made his ghost sense go off when he first walked into the room. Since he was at the Slytherin table, Danny deduced this was The Bloody Baron.

"So the rumors are true; the Phantom has come to Hogwarts after all." Bloody Baron said, teasing Danny good-naturedly. Danny looked at him dumbfounded.

"We all know who you are, kid. All us ghost anyway. It'd be kind of hard not to, what with you being legendary across the realm of the dead and all. Especially after you beat Pariah Dark." Bloody Baron answered the unasked question.

Danny went to respond but was interrupted by McGonagall calling out another familiar name.

"Granger, Hermione."

Danny smiled as he watched Hermione eagerly skip up to the stool and practically shoved the hat on her head. Not twelve seconds later the hat gave a call of 'GRYFFINDOR' and Hermione pranced away to the lion's table. Danny turned to Bloody Baron to question, but was interrupted by another familiar name.

"Greengrass, Daphne."

Even shorter than Hermione's, the hat placed Daphne, this time in Slytherin. He smiled at the blonde as she waltzed over to the table and sat across from him, although she looked weary of The Bloody Baron.

"So, the hat. The conversations slow down in the hat or something? Because they got placed pretty quick." Danny questioned his house ghost. Bloody Baron snickered.

"Pha- Kid, the conversations are the same in and out of the hat. You were up there a very long time. Longest time I've ever seen for it to take for a person to be sorted." The scarred ghost replied, chuckling a little.

"Yeah. Me and some of the other kids thought you broke the hat or something." Daphne joked. Danny rolled his eyes.

The list went on, kids being sorted one after another. Malfoy's second henchmen, Goyle, be placed also in Slytherin. Followed by Neville, the kid with the toad, sorted into Gryffindor and Malfoy himself placed into Slytherin. They were the only names Danny recognized until,

"Potter, Harry." Was shouted and the entire hall broke into whispers.

Danny had heard a little about the boy; knowing his name and the title as 'The-Boy-Who-Lived' but nothing more except that he supposedly defeated the Dark Lord of the Wizarding World as an infant, bearing a lightening bolt scar as a reminder. Not a lot of information really. Eventually, the hat had once again shouted 'GRYFFINDOR' and the ghost over there, Sir Nicholas, and the kids started cheering the loudest.

"Well he may have gotten Potter, but I've got Phantom. Not even The-Boy-Who-Lived can one-up The-Boy-Who-Died. He can try and rub it in all he wants but he knows I've got the better hand now." The Bloody Baron said, mostly to himself.

"Phantom? Who's Phantom? I don't remember hearing that name called." Daphne asked the house ghost carefully. Danny could tell she was still wary of him.

Danny shrugged as he petted Shade, who was meowing on the table, glancing at The Bloody Baron. The hybrid assumed it had to do more with animals' instinct to run from ghosts than anything, but with the cat being a Wizarding cat took most of its natural fear away.

"You mean you don't know, Phantom-" Bloody Baron started but was swiftly cut off when Danny kicked him from under the table.

The Slytherin house-ghost winced in pain. He forgot Phantom could touch them even in his human form. He turned to said teen, to see Danny glaring with green eyes at him. Bloody Baron coughed awkwardly.

Danny let out a quiet sigh as his eyes faded back to their electric blue color. He didn't mean to get so angry over nothing like that, but he didn't want his secret exposed so soon. Maybe eventually, to the right people at an appropriate time but not here, not now. Not yet. And he wasn't sure yet whether Daphne would be one of those people.

So far he was thinking Hermione, maybe Daphne and Neville if they ever spoke again. Hermione was definitely first in line; she was his first friend here after all, and she was probably smart enough to keep it a secret anyway. Daphne was a nice girl, standing up to Malfoy and his cronies proved at least that much, but even so she was obviously spooked by ghosts. Neville seemed like an okay kid; definitely trustworthy and loyal if searching for a toad for an hour and a half was any indication, but he hadn't talked to him enough to figure that out yet.

Maybe even those boys Hermione talked to, Harry and the redhead kid. If he ever talked to them, that is. Harry could probably understand, being famous and all, how he felt with all the attention at the very least.

"Oookey." Daphne drawled out, as if she was trying to pretend she didn't see that. Danny might have said something to her, but McGonagall once again interrupted.

"Weasley, Ronald."

Then the redhead kid that Hermione and Harry had rode on the boat with walked up to the stool. Once again rather quickly the hat shouted 'GRYFFINDOR' and Ronald strode over to Harry and Hermione.

"Um, excuse me? Mr. Bloody Baron, sir?" Daphne asked, _very_ unsure.

Danny almost felt bad for the girl, being scared shitless of the spirit. But then again, she was treating him as a ghost rather than a person so she kind of had it coming. Maybe it was just him and being used to seeing things that would scare any normal person out of their wits, but he didn't find Bloody Baron all that frightening.

The Bloody Baron turned his attention from the stage to the blonde-haired girl and gave her a questioning gaze. A little kinder than he usually would but he couldn't be too rude to Phantom's friends. He'd heard the stories.

"You never told me who Phantom was." Daphne pointedly told him, crossing her arms.

The Bloody Baron was, for once in his afterlife, at a loss for words. He couldn't very well just outright tell this living girl the identity of Phantom, who was sitting right next to him, without revealing the existence of halfas, which in its own right was a huge no-no. If the muggles reacted to violently to ghosts, and even some wizards had done the same, they couldn't possibly just be okay enough, as a whole, to know about the existence of halfas.

Then there was the point where all three known halfas unknowingly agreed and kept secret identities. The amount of beings that knew about halfas and were full human was only at four.

So the only way he saw to get out of this was of course to tread carefully.

"Phantom, as in Danny Phantom. He is another ghost except he is far more powerful than any of us. You see, yearling, muggle ghosts and wizarding ghosts are completely different and in the afterlife, it is muggles that have the upper hand. Danny Phantom is a legendary name among the muggles and ghosts, having taken down opponents most others would not even dare to face. And he is coming to Hogwarts." Bloody Baron told her, his voice full of praise.

Unfortunately, Dumbledore heard too since the names were done being called. Dumbledore stood up, rather quickly for an elderly man, and beckoned all the ghosts.

"Sir Nicholas! Baron! Grey! Friar! Up here, at once!" The elderly wizard called, his voice full of power.

Once up there the four ghosts and the headmaster, along with the teachers, disappeared in a white flash. Danny could only hope the ghosts didn't dime him out. He turned back to Daphne, only to find her gone. He assumed she went to talk to some of her other friends during the commotion.

So left with no other options, Danny stood up and made his way over to the Gryffindor table with Shade on his heels once more. He had heard of the Gryffindor/Slytherin rivalry and how it had gotten a little too intense at times, but he was sure that other than a few dirty looks and some lame threats nobody would go to extreme measures to remove him.

He ignored the glares from the upperclassmen and sat across from Hermione and Neville and next to Harry who had Ronald on his other side. He smiled softly at Hermione and Neville. Neville nodded with a smile and Hermione beamed.

"Danny! Can you believe it? I got Gryffindor, just like I wanted! Shame we weren't housed together, though." She greeted him happily. Shade hopped right up onto the table from the floor and laid down right in front of the witch-in-training, who happily scratched him.

"That's great. I've known you for a few hours and I could already see how badly you wanted it." Danny commented. "It is a little depressing that two of the three people I've met are in my rivaling house."

"Bloody hell! You're a Slytherin! What're you doing here? Trying to stir up trouble?" Ronald accused from the other side of Harry, who was utterly confused. Danny didn't seem like the other Slytherin members, namely Malfoy.

"No! I came over to see my friends, thanks. I hardly even know your name and you're already yelling at me." Danny told him, muttering the last part in remembrance of his past battles.

"Danny this is Harry Potter and Ron Weasley. Guys, this is Danny Fenton." Hermione introduced them; seemingly oblivious to the tension Ron was throwing at Danny.

Harry merely shook the other raven-haired teens hand and waited for the inevitable 'wow its Harry Potter' in an excited or sarcastic format. But it never came.

"Jeez man, you looked like I was about to punch you or something." Danny commented, seeing the look on Harry's face.

"Sorry mate, but I was expecting you to make a fuss. Glad you didn't though." Harry said, adding the last part quickly. Danny shrugged.

"Well I guess you could say I know how you feel. I wouldn't like getting all that attention if I was famous either so I won't be a hypocrite and make a big deal about someone else." Danny told him honestly.

Harry liked him already. Ron, however, was still angry.

"How come you're talking so friendly with a Slytherin? I thought you didn't like them!" Ron shouted at Harry.

Harry glared a bit at the boy, hoping he didn't ruin his chance to make friends with the only person who treated him like a normal person instead of a celebrity right off the bat, rather than him insisting they do so. Even Ron had lit up at the mention of his name.

"No, I never said that. I said I didn't like Malfoy." Harry tried to amend, glancing over at Danny. Danny rolled his eyes.

"That guy's just a pompous idiot whose head is so big it has its own gravitational pull." Danny teased the blonde boy. Hermione, Neville and Harry didn't bother to hide their laughter but Ron was still angry towards him so he tried to hide his snickers, to no avail.

"How can you be a Slytherin, mate? You're nothing like Malfoy and his backup." Harry questioned, still chuckling. Danny shrugged.

"I'd like to think I was put there because I'm clever and resourceful rather than evil or anything." He guessed out loud, earning murmurs of agreement.

He knew why he was there really, but he couldn't tell them that he was cunning enough to hunt ghosts, determined enough to best Pariah Dark when he was on the brink of death and had enough willpower to hang onto his life in the middle of being electrocuted from the Ghost Portal now could he?

As his mentor would say; all in due time.

* * *

"Now Sir Nicholas, could you please explain to me why in the bloody hell you've brought some muggle ghost nobody has ever heard of and is a potential threat to my school, to my school?" Dumbledore questioned as patiently as he could.

Sir Nicholas scowled a bit.

"With all due respect, Headmaster Dumbledore, I don't appreciate our guest being referred to as 'some muggle ghost'. His name is Phantom and he deserves respect just as much as you or I, maybe even more so." Sir Nicholas said pointedly, the other ghosts nodding. "Phantom has braved things no mortal man, most ghosts and even a lot of magic folk wouldn't. He's bested the forces of nature, looked death in the eyes and glared right back, go one-on-one with enemies that could rival You-Know-Who in terms of power and toppled beings that are looked at as gods. He may be powerful, yes, but I can assure you that he will be no threat to you or Hogwarts." The Gryffindor ghost said strongly.

"How can you possibly tell us that this muggle ghost- excuse me _Phantom-_ has done all these things and is not a threat?" Snape asked rhetorically, stressing the name Phantom. This time is was the Grey Lady who answered.

"Phantom is very benevolent. He only does what he does to protect what he cares about, his family and friends. All instances of the things he's done can be attributed to self-preservation or to protect others." She said profoundly.

"Yes, Phantom is even more forgiving and friendly then I, and I am the reason Peeves is still around." The Friar added. "He is the sole reason some ghosts feel safe anymore."

"That too. Phantom helps ghosts and muggles alike, and I'm sure he'd help wizards." The Bloody Baron tried to assure Dumbledore.

"Fine. This 'Phantom' has my blessing to enter Hogwarts but I wish to have a word with him. Do you think you could make it happen, Sir Nicholas?" Dumbledore gave his condition.

"Consider it done, Headmaster Dumbledore." The aforementioned ghost agreed, nodding furiously.

* * *

"Well, well, well. Looky what we have here!" Peeves exclaimed joyously. "A Great Hall full of kids and no teachers around to stop me." He continued, floating by the Gryffindor table.

The poltergeist continued by pulling out some torches and fireworks from nowhere, only to be stopped by a voice he never thought he'd hear in person.

"You might not want to do that."

He turned to see the mess of raven-hair and electric blue eyes that had become so familiar to everyone who'd been to the Spirit World, or its more current term 'Ghost Zone'. Even now in their concealed form, Peeves could see the black fade into white and the radioactive green peek from behind the blue. He was looking at the unmistakable form of Danny Phantom. The pranking ghost squealed in fear and excitement.

"You! You're here! I thought they were only rumors that you were coming to Hogwarts! Who would've thought that the legendary Phantom would come to visit our little old school!" Peeves shouted in shock for a minute but the shock soon turned to Danny's first language; sarcasm.

"Cut it out." Danny said simply through gritted teeth, hoping the others near him didn't hear the name 'Phantom'.

"Aww is the big bad halfa afraid of little old me?" Peeves asked, enjoying Danny's position to do nothing.

"I said, cut it out." Danny repeated lower, flashing his eyes bright green at the troublemaker. Peeves did instinctively flinch under the infamous 'scary eyes' but continued taunting.

"Never pegged you one for fear, Phantom." He teased. He shivered as Phantom's eyes shone brighter and he spoke again.

"Its you who should be afraid." He said.

The message was vague to the students around him at the Gryffindor table but to Peeves, Phantom's message was clear as day. So he did what any reasonably low-powered ghost would've done and floated the hell outta there. After which Danny turned to see the amazed looks of Hermione and her friends.

"How in Dumbledore's name did you do that? Nobody but Bloody Baron and Dumbledore himself can control Peeves like that!" Said the voice of another redhead Gryffindor.

"And sometimes not even them." Another redhead, who looked like the first ones doppelganger, added. Ron sighed.

"Danny these are my brothers Fred and George." He introduced, pointing right to left.

"Hey! I'm Fred!" The one on the left said. Ron rolled his eyes.

"My bad." He said exasperatedly, not sounding sorry in the least. Danny shrugged.

"He's having an off day?" Danny supplied but it was more like a question than anything. Hermione gave him an incredulous stare.

"Off day? The poor guy looked, excuse the pun, deathly afraid of you." She pointed out. Danny flinched.

"Then there's the fact that he called you by a different name entirely." Harry reminded. At first he thought it was an accident but after he had done it twice, Harry wasn't so sure.

"Accidentally?" Danny croaked out as he flinched harder. Damn, things got complicated quick when you lived a double life. Afterlife?

"Doubt it. He did it twice." Harry negated, crushing the Fenton boys hopes.

He was saved from explaining when Dumbledore, the teachers and ghosts appeared back where they had been before, every ghost looking almost angry. Danny decided he'd ask about that later. His musings were cut short when Dumbledore began to speak.

"Our house ghosts have just," He emphasized just, "informed me that another ghost should be coming to Hogwarts soon. One that goes by the title 'Phantom'. If you see him please tell him I'd like to have a word with him. I have been assured he'll be no bother to anyone here but be cautious and alert. Now that that's over with," Dumbledore chanted a spell Danny zoned out before he could hear it. Later he'll wish- well not wish he didn't wish anymore, be sorry he didn't hear it after he learns it makes food appear.

He was too busy glaring at Dumbledore. Danny could respect that, as headmaster, he wished that no danger came to his school. He himself was the same way with his town or his friends. But even after Sir Nicholas and the other ghosts had assured him, most likely multiple times if his reputation was a big as it appeared to be, that Phantom was no threat what does the old fart do? Announce to everyone to be cautious and alert. _Cautious and Alert._ Not only was he advising them to start being wary of him but also he was doing it rather _badly_. Imagine if you went to a zoo and right before you went in a tiger got out and the guy taking your tickets in the front of the zoo tells you to be careful and to not die as you go by. These guys were freaking wizards and they still were standoffish to ghosts. If that doesn't make them the biggest hypocrites ever, Danny might as well throw his definition out the window.

But non-the-less Danny bit his tongue and ate the food that he just noticed in front of him, not bothering to go back to the Slytherin table, preferring to eat with Hermione and her friends than by himself at his own table since Daphne had probably not returned either. Also, Shade didn't seem too keen on leaving Hermione's lap anytime soon and Danny didn't want to be the bearer of bad news for the little guy. So instead Danny just asked,

"Anybody happen to catch that spell?"

**Okay, I think enough people have asked for me to continue this story. So, it shall continue! Here is chapter 2! Hope you enjoy it as much as you guys seemed to enjoy the first one. **

**Also, there is a pole on my profile on who Danny should be paired with if there ends up being a pairing at all so check that out and feel free to leave your own suggestions for who you think Danny should be paired with if you had someone in mind who wasn't on the list**

**One more thing; I will most likely continue this story through the order of the HP books so the second year will be under a different story. Which means, Luna Lovegood starts next year. Should I bring her in already or wait like in canon? Your choice, readers just let me know!**

**Don't forget to review with your opinions/suggestions/comments/concerns!**


	3. Chapter 3: Friends, Fights and Phantoms

THE MAGICAL PHANTOM

CHAPTER THREE: FRIENDS, FIGHTS AND PHANTOM'S

It was the day after the sorting ceremony and Malfoy's henchmen shoving them out of bed rudely awakened Danny and Shade. The only thing that saved the three boys from flying out the window was Danny's extraordinary levels of self-control. Shade made sure to scratch their ankles though.

Danny shook his head and glared at the three retreating boys as they left the dorm room, being careful about the other Slytherin members in the common room; he was still standoffish towards most of them. After what happened last night, why wouldn't he be?

_FLASHBACK TIME_

_Danny hadn't left the Gryffindor table until Dumbledore announced that everyone would be taken back to their common rooms by their head of house and he was pleasantly surprised that his was none other than Severus Snape. He grinned as he walked up to the robed man. _

"_What was that about 'Ten points from whatever house you end up in, Fenton!'?" Danny asked happily, balancing on his heels to reflect his innocence. Snape glared and sighed. _

"_Make it five." He muttered to the raven-haired boy before he turned and led the group of Slytherins to a large old rock wall in the dungeons of Hogwarts. Snape turned to the Slytherins. _

"_This years password is Mongoose." Snape told them and to the amazement of the first years a doorway appeared in the wall, leading to a place all lit up with eerie green lights. _

_Most of the first years were creeped out but the ominous feel. It seemed only Malfoy and Danny were the only ones not fazed at all. Danny didn't know what Malfoy's excuse was, but to him a place with some flimsy green lighting was more of a welcome home sign than an actual welcoming after spending just a simple week in the Ghost Zone, not counting all his other trips. _

"_Danny, how aren't you at least a little off-put?" Daphne asked, glancing nervously around the room and standing rigidly by Danny's side. She obviously wasn't very comfortable here yet. _

_Danny shrugged. He couldn't tell her that his mentor/guardians lair was even creepier the first time someone saw it. He doubted she would believe him anyway if he told her that the place he considered a second home was an eerie looking clock-tower that put this little round hole to shame. And after just seeing Skulker's island, it made the Slytherin Dungeon look like a gingerbread house. All the freaky things students were bound to put on the walls and shelves couldn't compare to _actual_ skulls and pelts. _

_After that, everybody's attention was drawn to Snape who was going to start speaking. _

"_I regret to inform you that thanks to a certain somebody, Fenton, we're going to start this year off at a five-point disadvantage." Everyone glared at Danny. "But that shall just make it so much sweeter when we win the House Cup at the end of the year." Snape announced. Next he addressed which way the boys and girls sections were and promptly dismissed the students. _

"_Wow, Professor Snape is so cool! He's even explained to us why we lost points rather than just take them away like some other professors!" Daphne cheered with most of the other Slytherin. _

_Danny, however, scowled at the back of Snape's retreating form. Danny knew very well why the Professor did what he did, and it was certainly not an act of politeness. It was supposed to be an act of 'Hey that Fenton kid almost screwed you all over, now you gotta cover his mistake'. Danny knew that angle all to well- the one where someone tells the truth but not the whole story behind it to make them look better. Vlad often played that angle. But Snape had most likely played it, knowing Danny would recognize his game, to get his respect._

_What Snape didn't need to know was that he already had the halfas respect. But Danny would enjoy playing Snape's game for a while before he told him that. _

_So Danny ignored the glares from most of his housemates and went to where Snape said the boys were to sleep. He needed a goodnights rest right about now. Today had been one hell-of-a day even for him. _

_FLASHBACK TIME OVER_

And from that night onward Danny knew he wouldn't have many friends in his fellow first-year Slytherins. At least Daphne still talked to him, though. He found solace in the fact that he could talk to someone from his own house, rather than Hermione and everyone from the Gryffindor house, most of which gave him dirty looks the whole time he sat with them.

He would've taken that rude wake-up a little better if he'd gotten more sleep. He'd shown Shade his other form before taking a fly around the grounds of Hogwarts. Admittedly, not his best idea since he knew he had class in the morning but he couldn't help himself and stayed out for hours.

He'd checked out the other common rooms in case he'd ever needed to get into them, tried his hardest to memorize the layout of the inside of the building, as to not get lost on his way to class, sat on top of the Astronomy Tower for a good half-hour and he'd even practiced a little with his powers. Can't get rusty, he told himself, ghosts were unpredictable and whether they were wizards or not, he didn't know how magic faired against ghosts. It was probably four a.m. when he realized how late it'd gotten and went to bed, so being shoved awake at seven wasn't the _best_ way to start the day.

Danny sighed, already tired of today and went to explain to Shade why he had to wait in the dorm while he attended class. The feline didn't like it and hissed quite a lot, but eventually reluctantly curled into a ball. Only then did Danny realize that the cat probably had no objections to being left behind at all. _He _got to sleep in. Oh well, Danny though, at least he made an attempt to make him feel better.

So Danny, in his Hogwarts robes and all, made his way to Professor McGonagall's class on Transfiguration. Luckily last night as Phantom he'd shown himself how to get there and arrived with no trouble.

Once there, he saw that he had that class with the Gryffindor's and decided to take his chances and sat next to Hermione, who was the only person on the Gryffindor side with an empty seat. Although there was an entire desk open in front of her.

"Did you sleep alright?" She asked him, noticing his somewhat-tired appearance. Danny shrugged.

"Alright. Might've been better if someone," Danny glared at Draco, "hadn't woken me up twenty minutes before I had to get up." He said bitterly. Hermione shook her head in disapproval at Draco.

"Some people get all their kicks from pushing others around. Don't let 'em get to you." She told him, although her tone showed she was angry too.

Danny already knew that. The A-List back at Casper High were the same way and even some of the ghosts he's faced off with built their own ego by bringing other's down. He was about to reply to her when the boys he met yesterday, Harry and Ron, came shuffling through the class. Danny saw Hermione shake her head in annoyance.

"Ay, we made it." Ron huffed out. "Could you imagine McGonagall's face if we were late?" He whispered to Harry, who didn't have a chance to answer the cat on the desk, that Danny hadn't even noticed, jumped off and morphed into Professor McGonagall.

"That does justice." Danny muttered. The kids behind him snickered and Hermione shook her head in amusement while Harry and Ron sat in the desk in front of Danny and Hermione.

"Transfiguration is some of the most complex and dangerous magic you will learn here at Hogwarts." McGonagall started. "Anyone fooling around in my class will leave and not come back. You have been warned."

'She'd like Walker.' Danny thought to himself as they began to take notes. After a grueling note-taking session McGonagall had given them all a match and instructed them to turn it into a needle.

By the end of the class, however, only two students changed the match at all. One was Hermione, who had a perfect needle sitting on her desk where her match was and words of praise from McGonagall. The other was Danny, who had a pile of ashes where his match was and muttered words of apologies to McGonagall. After muttering 'whoops' of course.

McGonagall didn't even have it in her to glare and began to chuckle at the blue-eyed boys small misfortune.

* * *

By Friday, Danny had learned a good bit. Not so much about magic, but about the classes and teachers themselves.

Professor Sprout was okay, but Danny wasn't so crazy for the class she taught. Herbology was pretty boring, but studying the sky once a week totally made up for it. He tried not to sleep, he really did, but it was just SO boring learning about plants. Sam would've liked it though.

Professor Binns, the 'History of Magic' teacher, was apparently a ghost. And, he too, knew exactly who Danny was and was obviously showing special treatment like not admonishing him for sleeping in class or giving him extensions on homework. Normally, Danny would be 100% against this, but the class was just _**so**_ boring, he didn't even mention it. He just tried not to take advantage.

Professor Flitwick seemed okay, until Hermione told him that he'd had a fan-gasm (not her exact words but he'd read between the lines) at teaching the "famous" Harry Potter.

Professor McGonagall was as stern as ever, but Danny did understand why seeing as Transfiguration was no subject to screw around in. Hell he'd found out the only incorrect way to burn a match after just one class.

Although McGonagall was great, Snape was Danny's favorite. Not because he was his head of house or favored the Slytherins, but because someone _finally _appreciated his dry wit and sarcastic nature and instead of reprimanding him, just snarked him right back. He loved Potions already after just two classes earlier that week.

But Potions with the Gryffindors sounded like a bad idea from the start. Especially after Harry told them of his theory that Snape disliked him. Hermione had told him it was all in his head and that teachers couldn't be biased because they were, well, _teachers_. Ron laughed and told him it was just because he was a Gryffindor and Danny gave them his motto _"if someone dislikes you for no reason, go and give them a reason."_ Ron laughed again, harder, but Harry and Hermione shook their heads.

Then, the Potions with Snape drew closer and Harry, Ron, Hermione and Danny were now on their way down to one of the dungeons for the class.

"Got cold right quick, didn't it?" Ron commented as they walked. Harry and Hermione nodded but Danny shrugged. He didn't really feel the cold anymore.

Once there, Hermione eagerly found a seat and waited patiently for the class to start and waved Danny over. Danny shrugged again and went over to sit with her, next to Harry and Ron's table. Besides, sitting with the Gryffindors again beat sitting with Malfoy, since Daphne already had a partner.

Snape began to call role, pausing once not to far in.

"Daniel Fenton." He said exasperatedly, dreading the answer. Danny smiled and waved at Snape as innocently as possible, earning a glare in return from the dark teacher who continued on as if nothing happened, much to Danny's amusement.

"Ah, yes." Snape drawled out after Harry's name. "Harry Potter. Our new _celebrity._"

The Slytherins, minus Danny, snickered at Harry and Danny glared at his housemates.

"You are here to learn the subtle science and exact art of potion making," Snape started. "As there is little foolish wand-waving here, many of you will hardly believe this is magic. I don't expect you to really understand the beauty of the softly shimmering cauldron with its shimmering fumes, the delicate power of liquids that creep through human veins, bewitching the mind, ensnaring the senses. I can teach you how to bottle fame, brew glory, even stopper death- if you aren't as big a bunch of dunderheads as I usually teach." He lectured.

Silence filled the room after Snape's speech ended. Danny looked around the room, seeing everyone else's attention full on their Professor. Only when Danny saw Snape's small smirk did he understand that that was the point of the speech; to draw them in. Danny smirked. This was definitely his favorite class. Outside of Astronomy of course.

"Potter!" Snape called suddenly. "What would I get if I added powdered root of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood?"

Danny could tell by the look on Harry's face that he had no idea what Snape was even asking. But then again, he didn't know the answer either. He just knew it wasn't fair to throw Harry into the spotlight like that. Hermione's hand was up, though.

"I don't know, sir." Harry said. Snape 'tsked'.

"Fame clearly isn't everything." He said. "Let's try again. Potter, where would you look if I told you to find me a bezoar?" He asked.

As Danny predicted, Harry answered, "I don't know, sir." and Hermione's hand went up higher.

"Thought you wouldn't open a book before coming, eh, Potter?" Snape said condescendingly. Danny groaned out loud.

"Professor Snape, were you really expecting any of us to have the whole book memorized by the end of the first week?" He said, trying to get the attention off Harry. A few kids snickered and Snape rounded on Danny.

"Well I don't suppose either of you, Fenton, Potter, can tell me the difference between monkshood and wolfsbane?" He questioned, glaring at both black-haired boys. They both remained quiet.

Then after Snape practically spat the answers at them, demanding them to write it down, he took a point from Gryffindor for Harry's ignorance and a warning to Danny about interrupting the Professor.

He went on to give them an assignment to make a potion that cured boils and paired them with their table partner. So Danny and Hermione began to work. Snape walked around the room the entire time, criticizing almost everyone except Malfoy. Oddly enough, Snape didn't criticize Danny's potion, probably because Hermione wouldn't let anything be wrong with it, and instead corrected his posture. _"Sit up straight Fenton or I'll stick a board down your shirt."_

Just as Snape was in the process of praising Malfoy again, acid green smoke and a hissing noise filled the dungeon. Everybody turned to see Neville and Seamus' potion seeping on the floor. The whole class jumped onto their stools when the potion began to melt holes in people's shoes and many of the Slytherin sneered at Neville as the potion backfired on him.

"Idiot boy!" Snape yelled. "I suppose you added the porcupine quills before taking the cauldron off the fire?" Neville whimpered. "Take him to the hospital wing." Snape instructed Seamus, before he turned to Harry and Ron.

"Potter! Why didn't you tell him not to add the quills? Thought he'd make you look good if you got it wrong, did you? Another point from Gryffindor." Snape yelled at Harry, who went to argue but was swiftly cut off by Ron.

"Don't push it. I heard Snape can get very nasty." He whispered to Harry. Danny didn't get the memo.

"Why didn't you tell him not to add the quills?" Danny asked, now back off his stool and on the ground. Snape glared.

"Students have to learn from their mistakes." Snape replied, lessening his glare for an expression akin to scrutinizing.

"So what would he have learned it Harry told him?" Danny pressed. He could see most of the Gryffindors smiling and hear Daphne from the other side of the room giggling. Snape was silent for a moment until,

"Point from Slytherin for questioning my teaching methods, Fenton." He said, before he marched up to the front of the class.

* * *

"So," Harry started. "You guys want to come to Hagrid's to tea with me?" He asked.

Over the course of the last week Harry and Ron had grown on Danny, enough to where he considered them his friends instead of "Hermione's friends".

Danny also seemed to grow on Ron, as the redheaded boy really appreciated someone else with a sarcastic sense of humor, so much that Ron hardly even remembered Danny was a Slytherin until they had to head in for the night and was utterly confused one night as to why Danny wasn't around when he, Harry and Hermione were in the Gryffindor common room.

"Sure." Ron answered eagerly. "I was gonna ask anyway."

"Sorry, but I really should get started on Snape's homework." Hermione said. Harry nodded and looked to Danny.

"Okay, but I'll meet you there. I'm gonna go get Shade so you guys go on ahead." He waved them on.

Harry nodded and he and Ron made their way to the hut on the edge of the forest, Hermione went towards Gryffindor Tower while Danny turned around and went back into the castle and prepared to head towards the Slytherin common room to fetch his feline-friend but was interrupted when his Ghost Sense went off.

He froze and looked around warily, more out of habit that actual caution, and was relived when Sir Nicholas popped through the wall.

"Hey, Sir Nicholas." Danny said, relaxing. Sir Nicholas smiled.

"Hello, Phantom. Good day?" The ghost questioned. Danny nodded.

"So far so good. Was there a reason you popped out of a wall or?" He asked. Sir Nicholas nodded.

"Actually there was. Dumbledore is getting impatient and I'm afraid we ghosts can't put his meeting with you off any longer. Dumbledore wants to meet Danny Phantom today, as soon as possible, with Snape and McGonagall. I told him I'd look for you." The Gryffindor House ghost explained. Danny sighed.

"Okay fine, I'll meet with Dumbledore now." Danny double checked his surroundings and, after the last bunch of students rounded the corner, transformed. "Lead the way." Danny said.

Sir Nicholas looked over his form.

"You're ghost form appears… younger than before." He commented. Danny smiled weakly.

"Yeah, I know. I wasn't expecting that. That won't be a problem, will it?" He questioned. At least the echo in his voice helped a little. Sir Nicholas sighed.

"I guess not. Just tell them that you've been a ghost for years if they give you grief about your age. Whether you're eleven or not you've done greater things than most wizards have in their lifetimes." Sir Nicholas advised. "Now move along, we mustn't keep Dumbledore waiting much longer." He said, before flying through the wall he came out of.

Danny sighed and followed Sir Nicholas through multiple walls and celling's until they ended up in what he assumed was Dumbledore's office. Dumbledore and his beard sat at a desk in the room with Snape and McGonagall on either side of him and the other house ghosts, Friar, Grey Lady and Bloody Baron, on the opposite side of the desk.

All eyes went to Sir Nicholas and Danny as they entered through the floor, all of the magic-users sizing up the ghost immediately. Apparently, they decided he was no threat if Snape's smirk was any indication. But Dumbledore straightened up, as if seeing the power Phantom had where the others didn't.

Sir Nicholas waved his arm at Phantom and spoke.

"Headmaster Dumbledore, Professors Snape and McGonagall, I'd like you to meet the Savior of the Ghost Zone, Guardian of the Mortal Plane, Defeater of Pariah Dark, Slayer of-" Sir Nicholas spouted, until Danny nudged him with his elbow. Sir Nicholas cleared his throat. "Protector of all, Danny Phantom."

"Hello, Mr. Phantom. Lemon drop?" Dumbledore offered, pushing his bowl of muggle sweets closer to Danny.

"Hello, Headmaster Dumbledore, nice to meet you." Danny said, smiling as he took a lemon drop from the bowl. "Thanks". He said, plopping the candy in his mouth. Dumbledore nodded.

"Okay, he has my blessing to enter and stay on Hogwarts grounds." The Headmaster gave his approval.

Snape, McGonagall and Phantom wore matching shocked expressions but the Hogwarts ghosts just smiled.

"What do you mean, Albus? You've said five words to him, how did he earn approval so easily?" McGonagall questioned.

"And look at him. He looks no older than a First Year. Would you allow them to do whatever he's going to be doing?" Snape added, pointing furiously at Danny.

Danny was about to use the excuse Sir Nicholas told him to use in case his age turned into a problem, but Dumbledore spoke first.

"Young he may be, but his morals are unbreakable and he is wise beyond the years of any Seventh Year student. And look, he's completely solid. Not like the others we have here." Dumbledore explained.

It took Snape and McGonagall a moment to realize that yes Phantom was solid. And they'd seen him take a lemon drop without it falling through his hand.

"Are you a poltergeist?" Snape questioned specifically, reaching for his wand. Sir Nicholas scowled and spoke for him.

"I'll have you know that Phantom is _much_ more powerful than a poltergeist." He said, very sure of himself.

"And much nicer." Grey Lady added, earning nods from Friar and Bloody Baron.

"Then how is he solid?" McGonagall asked suspiciously. Bloody Baron answered this time.

"He's a muggle ghost. Muggle ghosts are more powerful than wizarding ghosts for whatever reason, but all muggle ghosts are tangible, colorful and have a much wider range of abilities than any wizarding ghosts." Bloody Baron informed them.

"Then tell me, Phantom, what are your abilities?" Snape questioned sourly. Danny smiled.

"Invisibility, intangibility, flight, overshadowing, Ecto-powers and I can do this." He listed, before forming his legs into a ghostly tail that floated all over the place.

He also didn't want to reveal all his powers just yet in case they turned on him. He doubted they would but you could never be too careful.

"Ecto-what?" Snape scoffed as McGonagall and Dumbledore's eyes fixated on his new tail.

"Ecto-powers. Like this." Danny said, before he created a little ball of Ectoplasm in his hand and made it fly around the room. Danny thought Snape was going to hide in his robes when it went over the Potions teachers' head.

"Impressive." Dumbledore commented. "It almost looks like a Snitch."

Danny decided it would be better if he didn't ask what in the name of Clockwork that was, and simply dissolved the ball.

"I suppose he could stay for a while. As long as he'll help if something comes up." McGonagall said, sighing. Danny nodded.

"Of course. Just yell if you need me." Danny said with a smirk, before he floated off the ground. "If that's all, I'll take my leave. Nice meeting you Headmaster Dumbledore, and you too Professor McGonagall. I suppose you too, Professor Snape." He said, smirking more before flying through the door.

The ghosts chuckled and Dumbledore smiled.

"I must apologize, Sir Nicholas, about before. I see now you were indeed right and that Danny Phantom is no threat." Dumbledore said earnestly. Sir Nicholas nodded.

"Quite alright, quite alright. As long as you see now that Phantom is a friend there is no harm done." He assured Dumbledore. Snape growled.

"He's just a boy! He can't be prepared for anything the wizarding world has to go against! What if You-Know-Who is in fact still out there? Are we going to send the poor boy out there with our most skilled Aurors and ask him to take on the most despicable wizard the wizarding world has seen in nearly a century?" Snape ranted. Dumbledore sighed.

"Sir Nicholas told us that he can take care of himself just fine, and I trust his judgment. Therefore Danny Phantom will be staying at Hogwarts until whenever he pleases." Dumbledore said strongly. Snape sighed.

"Yes, Headmaster Dumbledore." He agreed. Dumbledore smiled.

"Good. Have a lemon drop, Severus." The old wizard encouraged, sliding the bowl over to him. Snape just glared.

* * *

"Okay, Shade?" Danny looked down at his cat, who meowed to assert his presence.

"Check. Human form, and robes?" Danny looked down at himself.

"Check. Wand 'discretely' hidden in back pocket?" Danny reached behind him under his robes and grabbed the magic tool.

"Check. Alright Shade, let's head over to Hagrid's." Danny said, and they left the Slytherin common room. Shade meowed.

"Yeah hopefully without running into Filch and Mrs. Norris." He agreed. Shade hissed. "Yeah, I know you don't like her either." He said with a chuckle.

The duo weren't walking for ten minutes before they heard a cry of "Danny!" right after they came out of the castle. Danny turned to see Daphne, who latched onto his arm and started pulling him back the way she came, Shade made a noise of 'ack' in surprise and hurried to keep up.

"Nice to see you too, Daphne, but umm where are we going?" Danny asked, trying not to trip over his own two feet.

"It's Draco again, he's picking on the Gryffindor boy. I wasn't gonna do anything first, but he's stolen the boys new robes!" Daphne complained. She'd been going for a teacher at first, but getting Danny would solve this just as easily. And it wouldn't make her look like such a snitch.

Danny assumed the Gryffindor boy she was talking about was Neville, seeing as Malfoy's first favorite victim was in Hagrid's shed.

'Where I should be too.' Danny thought bitterly. 'But no, I had to get roped into another fight with Malfoy.'

Once there Daphne stopped dragging the raven-haired boy and pointed to where Malfoy's henchmen #1, Crabbe, was holding Neville's robes above his head and Malfoy was laughing and taunting Neville.

"If you want them, you've got to jump for them, Longbottom." Malfoy taunted and Neville jumped hopelessly trying to reach the new robes he'd gotten in the mail. Danny scowled and all attention, even the onlookers, was brought to him.

"Give 'em back, Malfoy." Danny said, rolling his eyes at the blonde Slytherin, who sneered.

"What are you gonna do about it, Fenton? Go run and tell Potter?" Malfoy taunted, earning some snickers.

"No, why? Miss your boyfriend already?" Danny replied, not missing a beat. _That_ erupted laughter from the crowd while Malfoy seethed. Even his henchmen snickered and Neville was almost crying from laughing so hard.

"You- you're a- would you just-" Malfoy stuttered in anger.

"Just give Neville his robes back, we don't want trouble." Danny tried again. Malfoy glared.

"Come and get them, why don't you?" He ordered.

Danny took a step forward to reach for the robes Neville was still jumping to get when Malfoy's second henchmen, Goyle, punched him square in the chest. It took him by surprise so he did end up losing his footing but nothing was actually harmed, but the crowd gasped.

Daphne went to help him to his feet, but Danny was back up in two seconds flat and glaring at the three. Goyle went to shove Danny again, but he was ready and used the henchmen's forward momentum to his advantage and the hybrid pushed him onto the floor.

"_Leviosa!" _A new voice called, and Neville's robes began levitating out of Crabbe's hands. Danny turned to see Hermione, wand in hand, casting the spell.

"No you don't, mudblood!" Draco called, going to charge the girl to break the spell.

"Like hell!" Danny said, tackling Draco to the ground. Try as he might, the evil heir couldn't get the halfa off his back.

Crabbe, at this point, had abandoned his chase for the levitating robes in favor of going to pull Danny up once he noticed Draco's predicament. All that happened was Danny ended up sitting on Crabbe, who was lying on Draco.

Seeing the danger gone, Hermione dropped the robes into Neville's arms as he smiled in appreciation.

Goyle, too, had gotten up and saw Danny sitting on his friends. So he did what any sensible man in his position would do; charge! But Danny just pushed off the pile of Slytherin and smirked as Goyle had trouble lifting Crabbe off Malfoy, who growled as he stood up and dusted himself off.

"You'll pay for this Fenton." He threatened before walking away, trying to keep his dignity, with Goyle and Crabbe.

"Cash or credit?" Danny called back and all the muggle-born students broke into fits of laughter, even Hermione.

Now with the main show over, the crowd began to disperse until only Danny, Shade, Neville, Hermione and Daphne were left there. Now alone, Hermione turned to Danny.

"What are you doing here? I thought you'd be at Hagrid's shed with Harry and Ron?" She questioned him. Danny shrugged.

"I just got Shade and was on my way when someone," Danny glared playfully at Daphne. "Dragged me away from my objective to get into another shouting match with Mr. 'too-big-for-his-own-britches' over there." He finished, nodding his head towards the way Malfoy left. Hermione shook her head, Neville laughed and Daphne chuckled as she turned to Danny once again.

"Um, Danny? Who are they?" She asked, pointing at the Gryffindors. Hermione glared.

"I could as him the same question." She said stiffly.

"Oh, right. You guys haven't met. Hermione, Neville, this is Daphne. She's from my house. Daphne, this is Neville and Hermione. They're Gryffindors." Danny introduced.

"Hermione Granger. It's a pleasure to meet you." Hermione introduced, going for a handshake, albeit reluctantly. She wasn't too fond of any Slytherin (save Danny) but she couldn't be so bad if Danny was socializing with her.

"Danny what are you thinking? Befriending Gryffindors! _Gryffindors!_ They're our sworn rivals, Danny!" Daphne ignored Hermione in favor of swatting Danny's arm. He winced, even though it didn't hurt.

"I met them on the train before we were even sorted and I'm not going to dump them being some people can't look past the colors we wear." Danny said determinedly.

"This rivalry is as old as the houses themselves, Danny. You can't just _ignore _it! Especially not for some goody-two-shoes know-it-all girl." Daphne insisted, glaring at Hermione, who glared back.

"Well this know-it-all happens to know a few spells that ought to shut your trap!" She yelled, stepping forward.

Danny immediately stepped behind the bushy-haired girl and holding her back. For some reason he knew she'd be the first to turn it physical despite the more naturally aggressive Slytherin girl also being there. Instead, he attempted to compromise.

"Daphne come on, they're not that bad. Besides, they're on Malfoy's bad side too. Can't this be like a _"the enemy of my enemy is my friend"_ type of deal?" Danny pleaded, ignoring Hermione's attempts to jerk her arm away. They heard a scoff, but it wasn't Daphne.

"The bloke's gotta have a good side to have a bad one." Neville muttered. Daphne chuckled under her breath.

"You know what? You're alright, kid." She said, smiling at Neville before turning to Danny. "Alright, truce."

Danny took that as a good sign and released Hermione, only to get slapped across the face right after. He held his cheek in pain, despite it hardly stinging. It hurt harder than Daphne had.

"What was that for?" Danny asked clueless.

"For stepping into Neville's fight without an actual solution. I was watching for a while to see if you'd use your head and simply levitate the robes away, but when it was obvious you didn't I thought it best I step in." Hermione explained, as if it was the most obvious solution in the world.

"It was pretty obvious." Daphne put in, attempting to smile at Hermione.

'Great, they've been friends for a minute and a half and they're already ganging up on me.' He thought bitterly.

"I had it under control." The American teen insisted. Hermione snorted.

"Name one solution you would have came up with if I didn't show up that didn't involve getting physical with those three?" She said toughly.

Try as he might, every scenario that Danny ran through his head without Hermione (and even some with) involved him beating the snot out of Malfoy and his little bodyguards. Hermione took his silence as the thing that proved her right. Again.

"Exactly." She said, nodding approvingly. Neville took this time to intervene.

"Don't worry about it Danny, I know you could've taken 'em anyway." He encouraged, before looking down at his clutched robes. "I'd better be off now, though, almost dinner. Thanks for the help, Hermione. You too, Danny, I really appreciate it." He said before heading back to Gryffindor Tower.

"I'd better head out too." Daphne said, half turning around to leave. "Bye Danny, see you later. Good day, Hermione." She said before she turned and started in the direction to the Slytherin Dungeon.

"Want to go to Hagrid's and see if they're still there?" Danny asked his friend, who hummed in thought.

"No, its almost time for supper. If they are still there they'd be just leaving when we get there, so there's no sense in walking all that way. Let's just meet them in the Great Hall for supper. Come on." Hermione said, grabbing Danny's arm to drag him back through the doorway.

"Oh, jeez, I'm coming! Why does everybody insist on pulling my arm from its socket?" Danny huffed in fake pain. But it was annoying. Hermione rolled her eyes.

"Get over it and walk faster or we'll be late." She reprimanded. Shade purred and Danny scowled.

"I do not have sensitive shoulders, yours are just- unnaturally hard." He defended himself to his cat.

All Hermione could do was laugh.

**So, there you go! Chapter three is done!**

**This was going to be longer, but my document fudged up and didn't save like 2,000 words so I had to go a different way. And I also can't remember at least 500 of those words.**

**Okay, for the pole. I won't be closing that anytime soon since everyone is obviously a little too young for any long-term romance or anything so the pole is more for later, but it will be up. And if you feel like someone should be added to the pole, maybe someone I missed for a possible pairing, tell me like whoever voted for "Other", just tell me who you're "Other" is. **

**As always, review if you have any suggestions/comments/concerns about this story or review your thoughts on the chapter are appreciated. **

**So, until "Chapter Four: Golden Trio's Ghostly Encounter"!**


	4. Chapter 4: From Dusk to Duels

THE MAGICAL PHANTOM

CHAPTER FOUR: FROM DUSK TO DUELS

"Come on Hermione, she's not that bad." Danny insisted. Hermione huffed.

"I guess. Got a big mouth for someone so short, though." She said back.

They'd made it to the Great Hall relatively quickly after Danny and Shade 'bantering'. Hermione still didn't understand how Danny supposedly knew what Shade was saying but it was extremely entertaining watching them. Actually, what was going on was Danny's less-subtle ghostly attributes at work. All ghosts, even half-ghosts, could register every language spoken as their native one. So an American ghost and a Chinese ghost could carry out a full conversation without either attempting to change languages. This talent also, apparently, extended to animals too as Danny understood all Shade's hisses and purrs perfectly.

"Because you're so tall?" Danny shot back. She huffed again but remained quiet. "Look, Daphne is the only person in my house that I can stand to be around as of now. Aside from all you Gryffindors, she's all I have. You guys are great and all, but I do need a friend for when we don't share classes."

"Right, because we're separated that much?" Ron's voice called. "Feels like every class we have to deal with Malfoy." He concluded as he and Harry sat next to Danny and Hermione respectively.

"At least we get to leave after class. Danny has to room with him." Hermione added. Danny shuddered.

"And it's not pretty." He said in a false-scared tone.

Ron smiled and Hermione snickered. Danny noticed the silence from the other raven-haired wizard and turned his attention to Harry.

"Hey? Specs? You okay over there?" Danny called over to Harry, who shook his head.

"Yeah, fine." He said unconvincingly.

"What's his problem?" Hermione asked Ron, who flat out ignored her. She glared while Danny sighed.

"What's his problem?" He asked Ron for Hermione, who smiled.

"Glad you asked, Danny. He's just thinking about some newspaper article that mentions how Gringotts was robbed the other day when him and Hagrid were there. Bummed since Hagrid won't tell him what was in the safe they visited, I guess." Ron told Danny, shaking his head at Harry.

"I tell you I was there that same day. If I knew what was in there I could help!" Harry insisted, suddenly coming to life. "Hagrid and I stopped at that vault earlier and Hagrid took whatever was in there out of it!"

"Help with what? It doesn't even sound like anything's wrong aside from an attempted theft, but they didn't get it, did they? I don't see the harm." Hermione chimed in. Ron looked at her like she was Looney and the raven-haired wizards shared a glance.

"Do you really think they'll stop is what he's getting at. Snape told me that Gringotts was one of, if not the, safest places in the wizarding world when we were inside and that there hadn't been a recorded break-in in god-knows-how-long. If someone would go through the trouble of breaking into the highest security bank in the wizard world, why stop because it's been moved?" Danny explained for Harry, who looked like he might burst at trying to make them understand.

"Yes, that's exactly it Danny! I don't think they'd give up just because the- whatever it is- wasn't there, especially if they didn't get caught. But where would Hagrid move the thing to if Gringotts is supposed to be the safest place?" Harry agreed, continuing his musing.

"You're bloody insane! You can't do anything about it and especially since you don't even know what's missing in the first place, much less who would want it and why!" Hermione cried at them.

"Nobody said you had to help! We can do this on our own, right Danny?" Ron argued back, looking at Danny for backup.

"That's ridiculous, you couldn't even levitate a feather without almost taking out your own eye, or even worse; someone else's! Danny, tell him he's being stupid!" Hermione yelled before Danny could speak.

"Umm, ah, well-" Danny stuttered under both his friends' gazed. Shade meowed. "Traitor." Danny whispered back angrily as the cat merely curled into a ball on the stool next to his owner.

"Attention, attention!" Dumbledore's voice carried across the hall, leading many to wonder just when the elderly wizard had made his entrance.

As everything quieted in the Great Hall, Dumbledore stood before the students with his staff behind him and the House Ghosts standing off to the side, smiling widely. Danny could safely assume whatever was happening it would be about him- er, the other him.

"Earlier today I met with the one called 'Phantom' by Sir Nicholas and our other House Ghosts. I only spoke to him for a short while, but it was enough to seal my judgment. And thus, Danny Phantom will be taking up residency at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry until further notice." Dumbledore announced, eyes twinkling as he spoke of the young halfa.

Just over half the entire first year muggle-born girls squealed. It was only really about a dozen (give or take a few) girls but it sounded like the entire school was dying. Shade hid under the table.

Yells echoed across the Great Hall, consisting of "Danny Phantom, here? I can't wait to meet him!" "Magic, wands and now I get to meet the best superhero ever?! I love it here!" "I heard he single-handedly stopped a massive ghost invasion! This year'll be so cool!" and more.

'Great,' Danny though, wincing at the volume. 'Just what I need; another Phan Club.'

"Sir Nicholas, why's everyone making such a fuss?" Dumbledore asked the Gryffindor Ghost in a hushed voice, as if trying to hide his confusion. Danny 's enhanced hearing picked it up and he intently zeroed in on the conversation.

"I told you he was a big dead, Headmaster. Saved the world single-handedly multiple times and more individuals on more occasions than most of our Aurors too." Sir Nicholas replied in the same hushed voice.

"We warned you Phantom was a big name, not 'some muggle ghost nobodies ever heard of' but I guess we weren't clear enough." Bloody Baron added. Dumbledore nodded and the discussion was dropped.

"DANNY!" Hermione's shrill cry yanked his attention back to the three Gryffindor's.

"Whoa. Spaced out there for a second. What're you saying?" Danny covered, shaking his head. Ron snickered.

"You more than spaced out, mate, you left the galaxy. Bloody girl's been calling your name for five minutes, getting louder each time." The redhead muttered in annoyance. Harry rolled his eyes but laughed too and Hermione just rolled her eyes.

"I was telling them that Danny Phantom was an American superhero of Ghostly nature, but then a thought hit me. You're from America, so you'd know all about him, right?" Hermione inquired. Danny almost phased through the bench in shock.

"What? What would give you that idea?" He asked nervously, glancing all around. How many people would _really_ notice if he sunk through the floor? He could be gone in two seconds flat really.

"It's just that you're from America so I thought-" Hermione started, only to be cut off by Danny.

"How'd you know that?" He asked. It wasn't like it was a secret or anything, but he hadn't told anybody yet. Primarily because no one had asked and it hadn't come up, but still.

"Your accent is a dead give away. You didn't honestly think nobody realized did you? Surely you must've noticed that you're the only person here who has an accent." She stated like it was the most obvious thing in the world. Which to her it probably was.

Danny, excusing the 'dead' pun, fought off the urge to tell her that _they_ were the one's with accents. Mostly because he was sure that was wrong, but also because it didn't really matter. At least now he could tell a little of the truth.

"I'm actually pretty familiar with him. He fought ghosts mainly in the town I used to live, Amity Park, so I've seen him fight a lot. He's had some great ones too." Danny nodded rapidly, hoping his enthusiasm wasn't seen through as fake.

"I know my parents used to talk about whether he was a good ghost or a bad one, but they knew he was real. One of my dad's patients went on vacation in the States for two weeks. It was only supposed to be for one week but he got stuck there when the town was pulled into another dimension!" Hermione exclaimed, as if it was news.

But to be fair, to Ron and Harry it probably was. Wasn't their fault they weren't the ones going toe-to-toe with the King of all Ghosts in an isolated castle in the depths of the 'Zone where you're likely almost never to be found if something went wrong. Good times, man, good times.

"And you believe that? How could muggles enter any different dimension?" Ron scoffed unbelievingly. Danny shook his head.

"No it's true." He said honestly. "We were all pulled into the Ghost Zone, but it wasn't because of the humans, it was because of the ghosts."

"Well see that makes more sense." Harry said, rolling his eyes.

"About as much sense as a school that teaches magic?" Danny shot back. Hermione smiled and Ron snickered as he leaned over to Harry.

"He's got you there." Ron muttered to his glasses-wearing friend.

Harry merely sighed in acceptance.

* * *

"Albus, I don't think it's wise to inform him about anything to do with You-Know-Who, especially since we have no proof he's back." Snape almost pleaded as Dumbledore walked the halls.

"Speculation is all we need. Other magical schools are activating their Aurors just because of the rumors. Am I wrong to inform the schools best form of defense about a supposed threat?" Dumbledore questioned the Potions Professor.

"The other schools don't have the only person You-Know-Who ever feared as Headmaster." Snape stated bluntly.

"Never be to careful." Dumbledore stated as lesson one. "And Severus, what do you know of 'Daniel Fenton'?" The elderly wizard changed topic.

"That he doesn't like to be called Daniel, he's sarcastic, witty and rough around the edges." Snape started harshly. "But very bright, mind you. He's the only Slytherin passing my class fairly. Quite bold too. Ever since I've known him kid hasn't had a problem speaking his mind, no matter what good or bad was on it." He finished in something akin to amusement. "Why do you ask?"

"Severus, something about that boy is different." Dumbledore started. "Different than anything we've seen before. He's only eleven and he moves like a seasoned warrior; sizing up everyone he meets in seconds. Done it to both Ms. McGonagall and me. He's the only person that managed to keep the Sorting Hat out of their heads since as long as I can remember, quite impressive mental shields they are. I would know I couldn't pass them."

"You tried to enter his mind?" Snape asked sounding disgusted.

"If it makes you feel any better I couldn't even if I'd tried any harder. He felt me too. Turned right around when I entered his head." He explained. Snape scowled.

"Good." Was all Snape replied. Dumbledore sighed and continued.

"Just tell Professor McGonagall to inform Phantom about the story of Lord Voldemort." The headmaster ordered. "This isn't a matter up for discussion."

Snape sighed regretfully. At least he wasn't the one who had to tell the ghost-brat.

"Understood."

* * *

Phantom was floating before Professor McGonagall now; a week after the matter of Voldemort was discussed between the staff and Dumbledore. Not that he knew that of course. All he knew was he was missing his first flying lesson for this.

Yeah, McGonagall picked the time to talk with Phantom as the same time flying lessons were being given to Gryffindor and Slytherin and Danny couldn't just tell her he couldn't meet with her because _"I have to go to class" _would probably blow the whole 'secret identity' out of the water.

Hermione was going to kill him if he missed it completely though. He was the only person she seemed to initiate contact with. Although she was usually around Harry and Ron, Ron wasn't exactly friendly towards her and Harry was rather indifferent but it was obvious he'd rather talk to Ron.

'So maybe,' Danny thought, 'if I can finish this up quick enough I'll only be late to flying lessons. Not like I need them, though.'

"You wanted to talk to me, Professor McGonagall?" Danny asked the Transfigurations teacher.

"Yes, Phantom, I did. I wanted to have a discussion with you about what Dumbledore seems to think you'll be quite helpful in." McGonagall said. She noticed Phantom's eyes snap towards her own, curiosity peaked.

"Which is?" He asked cautiously.

"Many years ago, we wizards were at war with one another. There was a dark, evil wizard who wanted nothing to do with muggle-born wizards or muggles at all. Wanted them all dead, he did. He used to go to Hogwarts too, way back when Albus Dumbledore was but a teacher here.

"Almost got what he wanted too. He amassed an army of his own, the Death Eaters, and plunged the world into the Wizarding War. For a long time there was no peace, only death and sorrow. Few places were safe from anything to do with The Dark Lord himself. Except wherever Albus Dumbledore happened do be, which was here, at Hogwarts.

"I'm getting off topic here. This Dark Lord, he wanted to kill everyone, those who resisted him in particular. And Lily and James Potter were above almost everyone on that list. One night he tracked them down, attacked when they thought they were safe. Both Lily and James were murdered on that night.

"Their boy, Harry, was spared for whatever reason. You-Know-Who's killing curse didn't have the desired effect and turned the Dark Lord into an empty shell, draining nearly everything he had. We all celebrated after that and things have been quiet ever since." McGonagall explained gravely. Her voice was but a whisper by the time she was done.

"Until?" Danny asked anxiously. There had to be an 'until' or she wouldn't be bothering to tell him this story at all. McGonagall sighed.

"Nobody knows for sure what became of him. Some of us prefer to think he died that night, along with the Potters, but others-. They say he's out there somewhere, weak, but out there. His most trusted followers, like Bellatrix, swear he'll return to power. And that's what Professor Dumbledore wanted me to tell you about, Phantom. The return, of _Lord Voldemort._" McGonagall finished her informative speech.

"And Dumbledore-"

"_Professor _Dumbledore." McGonagall corrected the Ghost Boy, who nodded.

"And Professor Dumbledore wanted me to know this in case he was coming back, right?" Danny questioned, but it was only one of the many he had.

Why was he being told now? Why not later? Unless Voldemort's return was becoming more widely anticipated but why would it be now? What had changed in the last ten years that would suddenly bring Voldemort back to power? And just who the hell was 'Bellatrix'? Was he supposed to already know that?

"Yes." Came McGonagall's reply.

'Shit.' Came Phantom's thought, but he didn't repeat it out loud.

"Thanks a lot for telling me about this Professor McGonagall, its nice to know I can be trusted with these things. I'll be training if you need me, but I'll be sure to tell you anything unusual." Phantom said instead of asking one of his many questions.

McGonagall nodded.

"It's probably best if you do it further away than you were last night. The first year Gryffindor and Slytherin students are having flying practices on our only training field." McGonagall advised as she made her way out of the room.

Danny silently nodded and flew intangibly through the roof and over to the training field where he landed invisibly and silently changed back to human form.

"What'd I miss?" He asked curiously as he stood between Harry and Hermione.

"Just Neville whacking himself in the face with his broom and Madam Hooch telling Malfoy he's been flying wrong for years now." Harry summed up. Danny smirked.

"We're about to start flying now. Hurry, Danny, get your broom up." Hermione told him.

Danny sighed and went to step forward to pick up his broom but Ron's voice stopped him.

"Not like _that_! With magic!" Ron informed him, his tone saying it like it was the most obvious thing ever. Danny blushed.

"Right." He said simply. He closed his eyes and concentrated hard on bringing the broom off the floor and into his hand. Soon enough, Danny felt the wooden stick make contact with his palm.

"Hey, I did it! And it's not a pile of ashes!" Danny relished his small victory. Hermione gave him a comforting pat on the shoulder but it was more like a patronizing 'you sure did' than a celebratory 'good job'.

"But, why was yours glowing green when you moved it? None of ours did it." Ron asked from the other side of Harry, who looked down at his broom as if asking, 'did it?'.

"I don't know. I didn't even see it close green." Danny said nonchalantly. Only half that statement was a lie. He knew what it most likely was, but he didn't see it happen.

"But-" Ron started to question, but Hermione shushed him.

"She's about to talk." She said seriously, pointing at Madam Hooch.

"Now," Hooch started. "Once you've got a hold of your broom I want you to mount it. Grip it tight. You don't want to be sliding off the end. Then when I hit three kick off the ground and hover!"

"One!" They prepared themselves how Madam Hooch instructed. "Two!" The students got ready to kick off. "Thr-"

Neville's familiar shouting broke everyone from their concentration. They all looked up to see the boy in question fifty feet in the air, screaming about how he kicked off too soon.

"Longbottom! Get down from there!" Hooch shouted up.

Danny rolled his eyes at the ridiculousness of the statement, like it would do any good to get Neville down? But Hermione elbowed him in the gut as a silent command to keep his mouth shut.

"Well really you'd think she'd do something more." Ron commented, agreeing with Danny. Hermione elbowed him too.

When the whole thing seemed to be over, Neville was hanging by his clothes from a statue that had pierced the fabric. Hooch was telling him to hang on, most of the Slytherins were laughing their hearts out along with some Gryffindors while Daphne looked up at Neville, almost sorry for the kid.

Ron was holding back snickers for Harry's sake, who seemed to look away in pity. Hermione looked to Hooch, as if waiting for her brilliant expertise while Danny silently waited for the true outcome.

Then it happened. Neville's robes gave out and the poor kid started falling from several dozen feet in the air. Luckily for him Danny's hero complex kicked in and Danny sprinted an impossible distance (for a human anyway) and heroically… broke Neville's fall.

'What was that? It was like something was pulled from under my legs!' Danny thought angrily, hardly caring about the boy on top of him anymore.

"Come on boy, better get you to the nurses office. You too, Fenton." Hooch said, helping Neville up first then going to help up Danny but he stood up on his own.

"I'm fine, see?" Danny said as he stood up and cracked his back. Hooch didn't seem convinced but nodded and left with Neville, not before telling the students to stay grounded while she was gone though.

"Look what Longbottom dropped." Malfoy said suddenly, holding up a clear orb in his hands. Danny recognized the object as Neville's remembrall from earlier that week; the one his gran sent him.

"Give it here, Malfoy!" Harry stated, stomping up to the blonde offender.

"Before I just go ahead and take it." Danny said, glaring at Malfoy as he grinned wider.

"What are you gonna do, Fenton?" Malfoy taunted.

Danny pulled back his arm and prepared a punch that would've knocked Malfoy on his rich little arse, but somebody pulled his arm back. Danny turned around to find Daphne standing there, preventing him from hitting the other snake.

"What'd you do that for? He took Neville's remembrall!" Danny asked sourly. Daphne glared.

"That doesn't make violence okay." She said strongly. Danny scoffed.

"But it was okay the other day when they had his robes?" He shot back.

"That was different," She insisted. "We tried talking reasonably to him then."

"Well that makes it okay." Danny said sarcastically. "He hasn't changed since then, if he's still pulling the same crap, so why can't I just-"

"POTTER!" A shout broke Danny's sentence off.

Danny looked around to see Harry standing, broom in one hand and the remembrall in another, confused as ever as Professor McGonagall stood at the entrance of the field. She almost seemed as if she was looking for someone the way her eyes drifted over the sky multiple times.

'She's looking for me. Probably making sure I wasn't training around the kids.' Danny thought. 'Well, the other me.' He added as an afterthought.

"Come with me." She said simply to Harry, who looked scared and angry at the same time.

"But Professor McGonagall, it wasn't-" Danny started to protest for Harry's sake, but McGonagall cut him off.

"Enough, Fenton. Potter, you-" McGonagall started but Danny wouldn't quit. He took a few steps towards Harry.

"Really though, Harry was only trying to help-" McGonagall glared at Danny and silently told him to stop talking.

"One more word, Fenton, and Slytherin will lose twelve points." She said, looking at him as if daring to continue.

And he almost did, until Daphne elbowed his gut. He settled for an angry glare. Maybe he'd haunt her later.

"Come on, follow me, Potter." She said, disappearing back inside. Harry gulped as he followed.

All Danny could do was mouth 'sorry' as Harry looked back one more time.

* * *

"I can't believe Snape gave us all this homework." Daphne said, flopping down onto the sofa of the Slytherin common room.

"Ow, hey! I'm already on here!" Danny cried playfully, shoving her feet off his lap. She rolled her eyes. "Speak for yourself. I finished mine in class."

"How? He gave us all that filler work." She said, amazed, placing her feet back on Danny's lap.

"Exactly. Filler. As in 'not going to be graded'?" Danny said, pushing her off again.

"But he walked around and made sure we were all doing the class assignment?" Daphne said, confused. On.

"He didn't even notice. Too busy criticizing every Gryffindor and giving free points to Malfoy to take points away from me." Danny said simply. Off.

"Fair enough." She said. On. "I'm not ready to start it yet."

"Just copy mine. It's been a long day, watching Neville nearly get maimed and all." Danny offered. Off.

"But that's wrong." On. "But using it for reference is okay."

"Ooh, clever." He commented. Off. "You, can try and use me as a footstool some other time. I gotta go, I promised Sir Nicolas I'd visit him later." He said, trying to get up. He was stopped by Daphne's feet going on again.

"It's not later its now." She said as if it were obvious.

"It's later from when he asked four hours ago." Danny said, rolling his eyes and standing up, pushing Daphne's feet off in the process. She pouted.

"Fine, I'll see you later." She said with a sigh, before lying down on the sofa and closing her eyes.

"It's in my room, Daph. Watch out for Shade though, he's been grouchy all day. I think that fan-girl squeal from this morning really hurt his ears." Danny warned, before heading out.

"Yeah, yeah." Daphne muttered through a yawn. "Thanks."

Then she rolled over on the eerie green couch.

* * *

"Where is he? He said to meet him right-" Phantom muttered to himself before he started pacing, which for him was floating back and forth.

He was cut off when he collided with a form that was just rounding the corner he was pacing by. The familiar sound of Hermione's squeal made him snap his head towards the sound to see her sitting on the floor. Danny scratched the back of his head with one hand as he went to help Hermione up with the other.

"Sorry. Didn't see you there." Danny said as he easily pulled Hermione to her feet.

"It's fine. Least I didn't have my books with me." She said, dusting herself off before she looked back at the Ghost Boy. "You're Danny Phantom, right?"

"The one and only." Danny replied easily. She looked quizzically at his clothes. "What? Something stained?" He asked, picking at his shirt. Hermione chuckled and shook her head.

"No, no, you're fine. It's just," She paused. "I wasn't expecting you to wear such… ordinary clothes?" Phantom shrugged.

"Time to change, you know?" He replied, looking down at his outfit. He didn't really like it either, to be honest.

"What's the guy Professor Dumbledore made such a fuss about wandering out in some outside corridor?" Hermione questioned. It appeared as though this was already bothering her.

"Waiting for Sir Nicholas and Bloody Baron. They're going to take me on a tour of the grounds I haven't seen, which is really just the outside and the Forbidden Forest, which I really want to see." Danny told her, his green eyes flashing towards the tree line. Hermione gasped an over-exaggerated gasp.

"Bu-but that's _forbidden_! There's a reason we're not allowed there, don't you know?" She said it like he was insane for even thinking such a thing. Danny briefly wondered how the Dairy King was doing before he sighed.

"For you guys, yeah, you're still students. I'm a full-powered ghost who can take care of himself against a few- what's even in there that makes if 'forbidden' anyway?" Danny asked in mid-explanation.

"All kinds of magical creatures live there and while some don't mind any humans, most are naturally territorial. I heard it was one of Professor Dumbledore's favorite rules." She recited. Danny rolled his eyes.

"Told by who?" He asked unbelievingly.

"Fred and George Weasley, of course." Hermione said, disappointment at the twins evident in her voice. "But you wouldn't know them, would you?"

"I've heard of them." Danny said simply. "I've heard of a lot of people." He expanded at Hermione's look.

"Do you know who I am?" She asked, as if it was proving a test.

"Hermione Granger?" Danny asked, but it was more like a statement. She looked shocked.

"How do you know that?" She asked incredulously. Danny rolled his eyes.

"Danny told me." He said. Technically not a lie.

"You told yourself?" She replied, looking at him as if he were crazy. Danny almost went into panic mode – "WHATDDA MEAN IM NOT THAT ME IM THIS ME" – but caught himself when he remembered that Danny, was in fact, his first name in both forms.

"No, the other Danny. Danny Fenton?" He explained. Hermione's eyes light up, like she wanted to inquire further, but their meeting was interrupted by Phantom's ghost sense.

"Good day, Phantom. How are you this afternoon?" Bloody Baron asked, floating up to the halfa, who smiled.

"Great. Just getting to know the students here." Danny said, jabbing his head in Hermione's direction. She appeared to become uncomfortable in the presence of the other ghosts and began to slink away.

Sir Nicholas waved at the Gryffindor girl and she waved weakly back before she turned down the same corner she came from. Danny sighed.

"Everybody judges the ghosts." He said simply. Sir Nicholas and Bloody Baron nodded sadly.

"Let's go, Phantom, we've got places to show you." Sir Nicholas changed the mood and began to hover up towards Ravenclaw Tower. Bloody Baron followed after and Phantom tailed them both, ready for the evening to come.

* * *

Danny was ready for this evening to be over.

It was going okay for a while. Sir Nicholas and Bloody Baron had been showing him the outside of Hogwarts. They'd show him the Quidditch field, the training field, the lake that supposedly housed a kraken and a lot of other stuff. But some students had probably blabbed that "THE Danny Phantom" was wandering around Hogwarts and students began to hoard them.

At first it was okay. A few fan-girls asking for autographs and a few boys asked a lot of questions about what powers he had and stuff of that nature. But soon there were too many for him to handle. He was sure one of those sixth year Ravenclaw boys poked his back to see if he was real and goddamnit one of the seventh year Hufflepuffs stole his left boot. Oh well, it would come back when he changed forms.

So after telling Sir Nicholas and Bloody Baron he'd see them tomorrow, he abandoned the large crowd and flew invisibly outside. Danny was about to turn and head to the training grounds, but he heard Harry and Ron's familiar voices.

"Harry, you'll do fine. Just because you're the youngest doesn't mean you're the worse! If anything you're better." Ron's voice tried to encourage Harry.

"You don't get it! I'm the youngest Seeker in a century and everybody is counting on me to just do something that your brother, one of the best Seekers ever, couldn't have done." Harry shot back.

Danny decided it was time for some fun and changed invisibly back to human form before turning the corner and enjoying the surprised looks on Harry and Ron's faces.

"Bloody hell, Danny! What'd you do that for?" Ron asked, catching his breath. Danny shrugged.

"Thought it would be fun. And it was! But what're you guys doing in the Trophy Room?" Danny asked them. They seemed to debate silently whether it was okay for them to say before Harry replied.

"Malfoy wanted to duel. He said to be in the Trophy Room after lights out. Did he leave yet?" He said. Danny shook his head.

"He was still there last time I was there, but then again that was before evening even came." Danny replied.

"Danny! There you are! I've been looking everywhere for you!" Hermione's voice whisper-yelled through the room. Ron sighed and the next thing Danny knew there was a cat in his face, meowing almost bored. "I ran into Daphne, who had Shade out, and she told me he wanted to look for you. When I told her I'd bring him to you I didn't know you'd be this difficult to find." She huffed as she set Shade down.

Shade looked up at Danny and meowed again, longer this time. Danny rolled his eyes.

"No, you're not getting more dinner." Another meow. "It's not my fault you didn't eat breakfast if you're the one who spent the next four hours complaining about your ringing ears." A hiss. "Well you'll eat breakfast tomorrow then, won't you?"

"Why are you here again?" Ron said suddenly to Hermione.

"To tell you that this duel is a bad idea. You're just going to get caught." She replied.

"Nobody said you had to come." Harry told her, double-checking the entrances. She sighed and went to speak, but Danny cut her off.

"Shh. Someone's coming." He said, hearing footsteps and doors.

But it was a full minute before anybody else even heard the faintest thing, which was Mrs. Norris sitting in one of the entryways. Shade hissed repeatedly while Harry whispered at them angrily.

"Mrs. Norris means Filch isn't far behind. Run!" He told them.

Hermione took off first, then Harry followed and Ron afterwards. Danny called to Shade to stop hissing and run before he too went to follow his friends.

They ran down a dark empty hallway, the sound of footsteps growing louder and closer. Danny was sure he heard Filch talking to himself about 'these rotten kids'.

"Well, well, well, if it isn't Potty Potter out of bed, hmm?" The annoyingly familiar voice of Peeves sounded. Danny didn't have time for this; he could hear Filch closing in.

"Keep going, I'll get him." Danny said, glaring at Peeves. The Gryffindors didn't move but the thought of being left alone with Phantom was enough for Peeves to get the idea.

That didn't stop him from flying down the corridor yelling "STUDENTS OUT OF BED, STUDENTS OUT OF BED IN THE THIRD FLOOR CORRIDOR" though. Harry panicked and lunged for the closest door, trying to pull it open but it wouldn't budge.

"Oh, move." Hermione said, shoving Harry out of the way. _"Alohomora!"_ The young witch chanted in a whisper, smiling as the door popped open.

Danny held the door open as they piled inside and he shut the door as quickly and quietly as he could, which only managed to be quickly.

"Which way did they go, Peeves? Quick, tell me!" They heard Filch say. They all held their breath.

"Say 'please'!" Peeves taunted. Filch growled.

"Don't mess with me, Peeves, now where did they go?" He demanded.

"Shan't say nothing if you don't say please!" Peeves said in a singsong voice.

"All right- PLEASE." Filch managed to grumble out.

"NOTHING! Ha-ha! Told you I wouldn't say nothing if you didn't say please!" Peeves laughed out before they heard him whoosh away. Filch's cursing followed after.

With a sigh, the four kids turned around only to come face to face with a massive head. Only it was between two other heads. The whatever it was started to wake up and stood to its full height, revealing itself to be one creature with brown fur all over and three giant heads, all with sharp teeth bared at the intruders.

Danny instinctively pushed Hermione behind him while he held his arms out as if to shield Harry and Ron.

"We're on the third floor corridor! This is forbidden!" Hermione whisper shouted over Danny's shoulder. Ron made an aggravated shushing movement.

Its sleepy heads finally focused on the kids and they all glared. Danny glared back, flashing his eyes green on instinct, as Harry yanked open the door once again. Hermione was the first one out the door, followed by Shade, then Ron and Harry right after. After what seemed like hours (but was only mere seconds) Danny stepped out of the door leisurely.

"You can't just come out of the den of a three-headed-dog like you were walking in the park, Danny! What were you thinking?" Hermione scolded him. Danny laughed.

It wasn't like he'd sat and chatted with the dog; he'd merely forced some of his natural ghostly presence outward. It had been enough to unsettle the beast for a few moments, especially with a ghost as powerful as he was.

"Hermione, you said this place was forbidden. Where'd you hear that?" Danny asked, changing the topic. She sighed.

"It was supposed to be part od Dumbledore's speech at the Sorting Ceremony but the ghost side-tracked it. Ron's brother Percy, a perfect, told us. He said that the other perfects would inform their own houses. Didn't anyone tell you?" She explained. Danny just shook his head and sighed.

"Wonder why nobody told them, though? It's not like its safe to go unaware that there's something like that here, let alone it being here at all!" Ron said angrily.

"Didn't you see its feet? It was standing on a trapdoor! It's obviously here to guard something." Hermione said, as if it was normal to notice trapdoors under giant creatures.

"Sorry Hermione, but I was a little preoccupied looking at its heads." Harry said sarcastically back. Danny smiled.

"Really, I've seen one of those before but this one's heads were definitely bigger." Danny muttered. He'd seen Pandora's multiple times, but her dog had thinner and longer heads. And it was taller than this one.

Hermione looked intrigued while Ron looked frightened.

"You've seen one before!/?" Ron and Hermione questioned, in fear and curiosity respectively.

"That's a story for another day. Just go back to your common room." Danny said, noticing that they'd walked back to the Gryffindor common room.

"Right! Before these two take us on another adventure that'll surely get us killed! Or worse, expelled!" Hermione said dramatically. "Night, Danny." She said, giving him a quick hug before darting towards the Fat Lady and uttering "Pig Snout" and stepping through the newly formed doorway.

"Guess your right. Night, mate." Ron said, elbowing Danny as a goodbye.

"See you tomorrow, Danny." Harry said, placing a hand on Danny's shoulder before he departed after Ron.

"See you guys tomorrow." He called after them, waving. Shade meowed. "Yeah, yeah, I know you want to get back in before Mrs. Norris sees you again. Let's go."

And with that, Danny and Shade walked down the ever-changing staircases out into the path that would take them to the Slytherin dungeon. But Danny wasn't accounting for the familiar voice of his Potions professor calling out for him.

"What do we have here, Fenton? Out after dark?" Snape called. Danny could only form one coherent thought.

'Shit.'

**Aaand done!**

**So lots of stuff went on here. It was kind of hard to do the Flying class scene since I didn't want to take TOO much attention off Harry as the main hero, but I couldn't just make Danny do something SO un-Danny. Danny probably would've actually knocked Malfoy off his broom, really. **

**I heard someone say Dumbledore was a little OOC? Sorry about that, its hard to predict how anyone would react to meeting someone as talked up as Danny Phantom**, **but I'll try and work on that. Anyone else OOC? Just let me know and maybe tell me why? I do feel like McGonagall is a bit OOC when she's telling Phantom about Voldemort, but how many other ways could it have gone?**

**Also, from here on, Dumbledore won't be as judgmental as I made him out to be in the previous chapters now that he's gotten a read on Phantom for himself.**

**One other thing, continue to vote! Luna is winning so I'll probably bring her in next year and let the friendship start if Luna does end up winning. And even if she does come in, she probably won't interact a lot with The Golden Trio. Mainly Danny and sometimes Ginny (who of course starts next year also).**

**Finally, don't forget to review and questions/comments/concerns/suggestions etc. **

**AWW thanks Akela Victoire!**


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